Spiel: This course is a survey of Classical Greek historical prose. It is designed to help you, first and foremost, (a) to improve the ease, facility, and speed with which you read historical prose, but also (b) to develop strategies for reading Greek historians with an eye for political, social, economic, and cultural history, (c) and to build a sense of shape, scope, and convention of programmatic books.

Screed: Translate from a clean text. You learn to read Greek by reading Greek. On Vocab Lists: The act of producing such lists may assist in acquisition of vocabulary, but in class, you should put the list away and try to remember or infer meaning. It is my view, moreover, that such lists might help you get through a day’s portion, but that if you really want to learn words, you should rely on repeated exposure and repeated consultation of the dictionary (reading a good dictionary is a good thing). Lists don't help much. On Heavily Annotated Xeroxes: To read Latin and Greek successfully you must learn mentally to cache meaning and syntax from the moment you start to read a sentence through to its end. A heavily annotated text invites you to get by without flexing that mental muscle. If it is your practice to bring such to class, please wean yourself from the habit by the end of week three, beyond which such are not allowed. On Heavily Annotated Books: OUCH! See above. But also, a book is a ktêma eis aiei. Store in its margins and interlinear spaces only the sort of information that you want to retain over a career. Anyway, data important enough to warrant long-term preservation and access should be stored digitally. Take a note; don’t mar a book. If it is your practice to bring such to class, please wean yourself from the habit by the end of week three, beyond which such are not allowed. On Written Translations: The act of composing a written translation is, in my opinion, the single best way to show yourself and others what you think something means. So, by all means, write out translations if it helps you grow as a reader; but do not bring such to class.

Score:

1. Daily Translation: 50% of grade; this is the most critical feature of the course. We shall devote the bulk of each day in class to translating aloud, quickly, fluently, confidently.
   
   
2. Author tests: 30% of grade; you will have the opportunity to take three translation exams.
   
   
3. Final Exam: 20% of grade; translation exam, closed book.