C350 Greek Literature in Translation (Topic: Greek Myth in Film)

We will consider some film versions of ancient Greek myths, by
reading Greek (and occasionally Roman) literary versions of them (or
in some cases, entries in a handbook of classical mythology), and
viewing films.  For example, we might
—read parts of Homer’s Odyssey, and then watch segments of Ulysses
(starring Kirk Douglas) and O Brother, Where Art Thou
—read parts of Homer’s Iliad and Virgil’s Aeneid and consider two
different films titled Helen of Troy, the “major motion picture” from
the 1950's and the USA Network miniseries from 2004.
—read Euripides’ tragedy Medea and the handbook’s plot summary of
Apollonius’ epic Argonautica, and watch segments of Jason and the
Argonauts, Pasolini’s Medea, and A Dream of Passion (Melina
Mercouri’s last film).
—read Euripides’ Heracles and consider treatments of Heracles in the
Hercules (starring Mr. Universe, Steve Reeves), Hercules in New York
(Arnold Schwarzenegger’s first film), and Disney’s animated
Hercules.
—read episodes from Ovid’s Metamorphoses and view other animated
versions of Greek myths, such as a segment of Disney’s Fantasia, and
a pre-anime Japanese full-length film version of five episodes from
Ovid’s Metamorphoses released in the US as The Winds of Change.
—read Virgil’s version of “Orpheus and Eurydice” and view Black
Orpheus and/or Jean Cocteau’s Orpheus,

Course grade will be based on participation in discussion and written
work (a midterm and final, and several short papers).

Required Texts
(note: used copies of these, especially the first and last, should be
available at the IU Bookstore and amazon.com)

Edward Tripp, The Meridian Handbook of Classical Mythology

Stanley Lombardo, trans. and ed., The Essential Homer (note: if you
already have translations of the Iliad and the Odyssey, perhaps from
other courses you’ve taken, you can use those instead)

Phillip Vellacott, trans., Euripides: Medea and Other Plays

A ClassPak of other readings will also be required