We frequently use the terms "democracy" and "republic" to describe our own political system, but where did these words and ideas originally come from? This course examines the historical development of the original democracies in Greece (primarily Athens) and the Roman Republic, as well as the particular institutions and practices that were associated with each. Course will also cover the development of democratic and republican institutions in the modern world.

This course examines positive and negative impacts of ancient technological advances: engineering (fire, metallurgy), writing technology (scripts, including the alphabet, the emergence of papyrus and vellum), military technology (shipbuilding, defensive and offensive technologies, and navigation), artistic (invention of dyes, lost-wax methods of bronze casting), infrastructure (roads, bridges, and aqueducts), and monumentality (Stonehenge, Greek temples, and the Roman Colosseum). Focus on the ways in which societal and environmental factors influenced technological development and vice versa.

Discover the fascinating and tumultuous history of the ancient Roman world, from its small beginnings in the early Republic to the high Empire, when Rome controlled the whole Mediterranean basin. Special focus will be on the political and economic conflicts between social classes, the Punic Wars, the fall of the Republic, its transformation into a monarchy, and the golden age of imperial rule. CLAS 404/HIST 404 is encouraged but not necessary.

Advanced work in classics. Research paper. Not open to freshmen and sophomores.