Classics Outreach Program
The Department of Classics' Outreach Program offers engaging, audience-oriented workshops about the ancient world targeted to students at the secondary education level. The purpose of these interactive and innovative presentations is to foster an enthusiasm for ancient languages and cultures, to celebrate Brooklyn's and New York's unique contribution to the study of antiquity, and to share our passion for teaching about the ancient Mediterranean.
Each workshop is facilitated by a faculty member of the Classics Department on a topic related to their particular expertise. While most workshops can be held on location at the participating school or online, via Zoom, teachers and presenters might choose a more conducive location (Brooklyn Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, American Numismatic Society, Schomburg Center, etc.) depending on the topic, and the current state of the COVID crisis.
Available presentations are self-contained events, each with its own unique focus; high school programs and teachers can choose ones that best suit the interests of their school or class. Participating students may already have familiarity with Latin or ancient cultures more generally, but most presentations can be tailored to a wider audience, or even used as a recruiting tool for a Latin/Classics club or program.
All workshops are entirely free for participating schools.
Each presentation is designed to be 40 to 45 minutes long.
The following is a list of available workshops. During some semesters it may not be possible to offer all of these due to faculty constraints; bear in mind also that it will be necessary to work around the teaching schedules of the faculty who will deliver them. E-mail Associate Professor Philip Thibodeau for an update on current availability, and to make arrangements to schedule one for your school or class. Contact us at least five weeks before the anticipated date of delivery. If you have a request for a presentation on some other topic, we would love to hear it, and we will consider whether we can add a workshop on it to next year's menu.
Franz Kafka and the Sirens
This is a collaborative exploration of Franz Kafka's short, fictional text known as "The Silence of the Sirens." Kafka, one of the most important writers of the 20th century, studied Greek and Latin in high school. We will examine his text together carefully, considering how he draws on the Homeric story of the Sirens in order to talk about the role of the artist in relation to fame (singing) and oblivion (silence). With slides.
The Cyclops and Godzilla
Working together as a group, the class will compare the character Dr. Serizawa from the movie Godzilla (Gojira, 1954) to the Cyclops in the Odyssey. Examining still images from the movie, we will consider the significance of Serizawa's eyepatch, which makes him into a one-eyed man, and his diving mask, which has a round window that emphasizes his monocular way of seeing. The presenter will introduce the themes of perspective, xenophobia, and human progress as topics for discussion. Illustrated by slides.
What's (Behind) Your Sign?
This is an interactive talk that explores the Latin, Greek, and Babylonian traditions behind the 12 zodiacal signs as well as Greco-Latin roots and vocabulary. Not an introduction to astrology per se, but a tour of the rich multicultural heritage that underlies it. After an initial exploration of the topic, students are invited to tell the speaker which signs they would like to investigate. Illustrated by slides.
Pirates of the Ancient Mediterranean
This is both an introduction to the ways and lives of pirates in the ancient Mediterranean as well as a consideration of the question, what is the difference between a pirate community and an "ordinary" city or state? The talk focuses on three case studies, one from Homeric Greece, one from late Archaic Greece (Polycrates of Samos), and one from Roman times (the Cilician pirates). The rhetorical approach is to have the students imagine themselves into the lives of ancient pirates, and, at the end, to consider how these communities were "normal," and how they were unusual. Illustrated by slides.
Magic in the Ancient World
This lecture contains interactive projects alongside some introductory material, illustrated by slides. We begin with a brief discussion about magic, wizard, witch, potion, and spell, especially what images and ideas those words convey to our modern ears/imaginations. We then turn to a hands-on project in which students create their ancient curse tablet using aluminum foil and a safety pin. After learning about the stock formula used in all ancient binding spells (in English or Latin), students replicate the formula by making their own ancient defixio followed by a period of reflection on ancient curse tablets, their cultural contexts and purposes. The second part of the lecture is a team activity in which students are given various pictures of objects or texts (in English). Each team is first asked to give their initial impressions about the object/texts; after receiving a sealed envelope with additional information about their object/text, the teams then reflect on how that additional information changes/alters their initial impressions. The lecture ends with students sharing their thoughts about their objects/reflections.
Plato's Cave as Metaphor for Racial Injustice
This lecture contains interactive discussion with small group breakouts. It begins with a brief introduction to Plato's cave allegory, pairing snippets of text with modern depictions of the cave. In groups, students reflect on those cultural institutions (cellphones, social media, modern myth-making, etc.) that create/reinforce illusions about our reality. Coming back together, we turn to Martin Luther King Jr. and Huey P. Newton and their use of Plato's cave when talking about race and racism in the United States. This discussion will combine images and excerpts from texts. The final part of the lecture is a discussion of Jordan Peele's US and Royce da 5'9"'s The Allegory, combining video clips and a couple album tracks. The lecture ends with a small group reflection on how Peele and Royce da 5'9" apply Plato's cave to 21st-century America.
Pompeii: The Life, Death, and Rediscovery of an Ancient Roman Town
How do we reconstruct a vanished culture or city? We will explore this question while looking at Pompeii, the city buried by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 CE and recovered over the past few centuries through the painstaking work of archeologists. Includes overview of Pompeii the town, its architecture and artifacts, a brief discussion of Pliny the Younger's eyewitness account of the eruption, and examination of the last moments of humans and animals, as powerfully captured in plaster casts of their bodies. Format: Interactive lecture with games (e.g., "Guess the business establishment," "Guess the artifact"); optional translation exercises tailored to age and language ability.
Imperial Rome: The World's First Megacity
This is an interactive lecture on the topic of how the Romans built, maintained, and (more or less) successfully governed a city of a million inhabitants in a pre-industrial world. How were different neighborhoods in the city defined? Who lived in them? What were the major Roman building types? What did the Romans do with concrete, and the arch? How did the Romans feed and police the city, and protect it (e.g. against fires)? Depending on the age and Latin ability of students, lecture can incorporate illustrative and relevant texts (including very brief selections from Martial, Juvenal, and Suetonius).
Hiding in Plain Sight: Words and Myths We Get From Greek and Latin
Scan the screens or headlines for common terms that turn out to have hidden storylines that come from peoples living some 2,000 years ago in lands around the Mediterranean Sea—terms from two cultures: Hellenic culture speaking the Greek language and Roman culture speaking Latin. The account can be introduced with a brief history of colonialism: its roots around the Mediterranean, Roman aggression and interaction in Europe, then metaphoric projection of Mediterranean to the Caribbean. At every stage attention to the common roots and their combinations. Format: interactive discussion.
Money! Money! Money!
Who made the first coins and why? What did people do for money before coins existed? How did different cultures around the Mediterranean adopt and adapt the use of coins to fit their local resources and cultural traditions? What pictures show up on coins and why? What do ancient coins have to do with the coins we use today? These questions and more will be explored in an interactive, richly illustrated talk. Depending on instructor preference, the talk can incorporate specific mythology, historical themes, events, people(s), or language use in order to better integrate with course curriculum. The session culminates in a handling session of genuine ancient Mediterranean coins for all participants with plenty of time for questions and answers.
"Happy Slaves"—Really?!
Popular Latin textbooks have come under fire for normalizing world views that are considered morally abhorrent. Is the slave really happy or lazy? What does the choice of illustrations imply about the characteristics and ethnicity of various characters? When do we laugh at women and girls and their emotions? How do we talk about rape and genocide when they come up in our ancient authors? This is a facilitated workshop that introduces students to various contemporary perspectives debates and asks them to become experts in reading and critiquing the very textbooks from which they are presently learning. The classroom instructor and the guest facilitator will work together ahead of time to create a space that empower students to reflect on their own educational experience.
