Admission requirements
This class can be taken in fulfillment of the requirements of both the MA and the Research MA program in Classics and Ancient Civilizations (track Classics), with differential requirements.
Admission requirements: a BA degree in Classics, obtained from a university in the Netherlands, or a comparable qualification obtained from a university outside the Netherlands. Moreover, students with an international degree have to contact the coordinator of studies to check admissibility.
If you are interested in taking this course but are not sure whether you fulfill the entry requirements, please, contact the instructor.
Description
The Art of Deception: Fake News, Rumors and Deception the Anchoring Alternative Facts in Ancient Literature
Magna quaestio est de mendacio, quae nos in ipsis quotidianis actibus nostris saepe conturbat (Augustinus, De mendacio 1.1).
Fake news, desinformation and other forms of deceptive unauthorized speech – lies, rumors, hearsay – have existed since Homer's epics. In the seminar we will explore, how, why and under which circumstances fake news succeeded in intruding various genres of Greek and Latin literature. We will look into the rhetorical devices fake news employ and discuss their poetological and narrative implications. Starting with Hesiod’s ‘lying muses’, we will approach different forms of intentional and unintentional deception, we meet trickster figures and we are faced with ambivalent narration.
From a cultural-historical perspective, we shall explore the social function fake news may have in Ancient Societies: To what extent did they have an impact on the public and private life and on the discourse and negotiation of norms and political disputes? Does the way in which it is dealt with change with the development of an ancient society that was long based on oral communication through written culture?
A specific focus will be put on the exploration of the rhetoric techniques and the intentions of various forms of desinformation: Fake news, rumors and deception often operate with invented references to literary, artistic or cultural traditions or bodies of knowledge in order to create a (self-created) authority which helps them to anchor something new against the deceptive (fictitious) background. Which strategies of deceptive invention and anchoring of ‘false’ innovation prove to be particularly fruitful, which fail and why?
In our Seminar, we shall study a wide range of texts from poetry and prose from Homer to late antiquity, from epics to anecdotes, from historiography to phantastic writing, from philosophical to religious texts.
Course objectives
Knowledge and insight:
Students gain:
knowledge of a selection of ancient Greek and Latin on or revolving around desinformation;
knowledge of recent scholarly approaches to ancient desinformation;
insight into advanced scholarship on the history of desinformation;
knowledge of some key issues in the history of desinformation.
Skills: (for differentiation between MA and ResMA, see below under Assessment Methods)
Students learn
to formulate a complex research question, to collect relevant materials, to analyze results, to construct arguments, to formulate conclusions (research, analysing);
to demonstrate their grasp of critical issues in recent scholarship, and to assess recent scholarly contributions by confronting them with the original source material (research, analysing);
to read and translate Greek (and some Latin) texts into idiomatic English; to discuss the semantics of lexemes and the grammatical and discourse linguistic features of these texts (reading);
to read independently a selection of Greek and Latin texts with the help of commentaries (independent learning);
to critically assess scholarship according to the standards of academic debate (research);
to give a clear and well-argued oral presentation about a specific narrative fake news, making effective use of a handout (mandatory) and other presentation devices (oral communication, presenting);
to present a well-argued and well-formulated constructive response to a presentation (oral communication, presenting);
to write a scholarly paper, which will offer a clear and well-structured presentation of original research (research, written communication);
to participate actively in discussion and debate: the student demonstrates involvement in the topic by asking well-informed and constructive questions and making contributions to the collective progress, on the basis of antecedent independent preparation (oral communication);
This research seminar contributes to the achievement of learning outcomes 4a and 4c (to give and write a clear and well-argued oral and written presentation on a research topic in accordance with academic standards) of the study programme Classics and Ancient Civilizations.
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
Mode of instruction
- Seminar
Assessment method
Written examination with essay questions
Oral presentation
Active Participation/coöperation in class/group
Essay, paper
Assessment
Written Examination with short open questions about and translations of Greek (and a few Latin) texts and short open questions and essay questions on secondary literature (30%)
Oral presentation (30%)
Participation (10%)
Written Paper (3000-4000 words) (30%)
The requirements for MA and ResMA students are differentiated:
The paper of an MA student will present a specific text passage with translation and commentary.
The paper of a Research MA student will take the form of a scholarly article that presents the innovative and well-argued interpretation of a narrative or text passage, with a clear research question, an argument, and a conclusion.
Weighing
The final mark for the course is established by determining the weighted average. To pass the course, the weighted average of the partial grades must be 5.5 or higher.
Resit
The written examination, oral presentation and paper can be re-taken.
Inspection and feedback
How and when an exam review will take place will be disclosed together with the publication of the exam results at the latest. If a student requests a review within 30 days after publication of the exam results, an exam review will have to be organized.
Reading list
A reader containing all Greek and Latin texts as well as further readings will be provided at the beginning of August.
Registration
Enrolment through MyStudyMap is mandatory.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the right information bar.
For questions about enrolment, admission, etc, contact the Education Administration Office: Arsenaal
Remarks
Students are expected to attend the classes regularly, to be fully prepared, and to participate actively in discussions.