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. If you are interested in taking this course, but are not sure whether you fulfill the entry requirements, please contact the instructor.
Description
Vergil wrote three things: the Eclogues, the Georgics and the Aeneid. Or did he? The Neronian poet Lucan attributes the mock-epic poem Culex to Vergil as well, as do Statius and Martial a few decades later. And their contemporary Quintilian cites Catalepton 2 as an authentic Vergilian creation. Not to mention Donatus (4th century), who in his Vita Vergiliana mentions many more titles.
These and other poems, transmitted under Vergil's name, are collected in the so-called (J.J. Scaliger) Appendix Vergiliana: an heterogeneous and fascinating collection, including inter alia epyllia (Culex and Ciris), elegies (Elegiae in Maecenatem), epigrams (Catalepton), a didactic poem (Aetna), three Priapea, and even a poetic pesto recipe (Moretum). Unfortunately, most of these texts have been transmitted in a poor condition, so that students of the Appendix Vergiliana are bound to engage with textual criticism.
Did Vergil really write these poems? If not, who did? Have they been erroneously attributed to Vergil by scribes or scholars? And if so, why? Or should we read them as parodies? Or as falsifications, intended to deceive readers? Or as "supplements" to complete Vergil's poetic career? Do such pseudepigrapha constitute a literary "genre"? Should we perhaps reconsider the very concept of "authorship" (auctoritas)? Are there parallels with literary pseudonymity in our times? These and related questions, which have received much scholarly attention in recent years, will be explored. We will also pay attention to the much debated “Helen-episode” and the “pro-proem” of the Aeneid, which may also be dubbed pseudo-Vergilian, and to the ancient Vitae Vergilianae.
In connection with their "pseudo-ness", we will especially examine the poems' engagement with other poems. The Culex, for instance, reworks (or anticipates?) Aeneid 6, Catalepton 10 seems to be a parody of Catullus, and the Ciris responds to Ovid's treatment of the same myth in Metamorphoses 8 (or vice versa?). Intertextuality will thus be one of our major concerns.
Course objectives
Knowledge and insights
Broadening knowledge of Latin literature, esp. Vergil’s oeuvre and its ancient receptions;
Knowledge of concepts from literary theory, such as 'pseudo-ness', 'parody', 'authorship', 'intertextuality' and 'career criticism'.
Insight and skills
Enlarging reading and interpretative competence of Latin texts;
Practising intertextuality and textual criticism;
Practising critical assessment of secondary literature;
Enhancing research skills;
Enhancing presentation skills;
Enhancing writing skills.
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
Mode of instruction
Seminar
Assessment method
Assessment
At the end of the semester, there will be a written examination on the Latin texts and a selection of the secondary literature (40%). Secondly, students will write an abstract, give an oral presentation (20%) and write a paper (30%) that addresses one of the poems and its (pseudo)Vergilian nature. All students are expected and required to be present and well-prepared, and to participate in the discussions (10%).
Written examination (40%)
Oral presentation (20%)
Paper (30%)
Preparation and active participation (10%)
The final mark for the course is established by determination of the weighted average, which must be 5.5 or higher, with the additional requirements that the student must pass both the written examination and the paper with 5.5 or higher.
Resit
In the event that the written examination is judged unsatisfactory, a resit will be arranged. In the event that the paper is judged unsatisfactory, an improved version will have to be submitted at a later stage (date to be determined). In such cases, the other marks will still count.
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
Students are expected to bring a critical edition of Vergil’s Aeneid and of the Appendix Vergiliana, preferaby Salvatore et alii (1997), and an English translation, preferably the revised Loeb edition (Goold 2000). Secondary literature will be made available through Brightspace.
Salvatore, A. De Vivo, L. Nicastri, and G. Polara (eds.) (1997) Appendix Vergiliana. Scriptores Graeci et Latini (Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato, Roma).
G. P. Goold (ed.) (2000) Virgil. Vol. 2, Aeneid, Books 7–12: Appendix Vergiliana. Revised edition. English translation by H. Rushton Fairclough. Loeb Classical Library 64 (Harvard University Press, Cambridge MA).
W.V. Clausen, F.R.D. Goodyear, E.J. Kenney and J.A. Richmond (eds.) (1966) Appendix Vergiliana Scriptorum Classicorum Bibliotheca Oxoniensis (Clarendon, Oxford).
Registration
Enrolment through MyStudyMap is mandatory.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
For the registration of exchange students contact Humanities International Office.
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
Not applicable.