Classics MA (Hons)

In the first two years of your degree (known as sub-honours) you will take three modules per semester: Greek, Latin and one other subject. Over the two Honours years, you will take at least two modules in each language.

1st Year

Students will take two Greek modules and two Latin modules. The modules you take are dependent on your knowledge of Latin and Greek prior to the course.

Greek

Beginners in Greek will take the following two compulsory modules:

• Greek Language for Beginners: provides a thorough grounding in the Greek language for beginners or near beginners.
• Greek Literature for Beginners: designed to follow Greek Language for Beginners. Prepares students for the challenge of reading and interpreting Greek literature.

Students who have studied Greek to SQA Higher level, A-level, or equivalent will take the following two compulsory modules:

• Greek Language and Literature 1: involves detailed study of a range of set texts and linguistic and translation exercises designed to enhance students' knowledge of Greek and confidence in reading Greek literature in its historical and cultural context.
• Greek Pastoral and Passion: introduces students to the thematic connections between bucolic or pastoral poetry and the Greek novel. Involves detailed study of set texts and linguistic and translation exercises.

Latin

Beginners in Latin will take the following two modules:

• Elementary Latin 1: provides an introduction to the Latin language for beginners, concentrating on morphology, vocabulary, and basic syntax.
• Elementary Latin 2: builds on work from Elementary Latin 1 and develops knowledge of Latin language and enables the reading of Latin texts for beginners.

Students who have studied Latin to SQA Higher, GCE A-level or equivalent will take the following two modules:

• World of Latin 1: enhances understanding of Latin grammar and syntax and increases vocabulary for students who have studied Latin previously.
• World of Latin 2: builds on work from World of Latin 1 and introduces students who have studied Latin previously to a wider range of Latin literature.

Students will take two Greek modules and two Latin modules. The modules you take are dependent on your knowledge of Latin and Greek prior to the course.

Greek

Ex-beginners in Greek will take the following two compulsory modules:

• The Landscape of Greek Prose (A): designed for students to follow on from Greek Pastoral and Passion. Examines a wide range of Greek prose texts, and enhances Greek language skills through regular language classes.
• The Landscape of Greek Poetry (A): follows on from The Landscape of Greek Prose (A). Covers a diverse range of ancient poetry in the original Greek, starting with Homer’s Iliad, and enhances Greek language skills through regular language classes.

Students who have studied Greek to SQA Higher, GCE A-level or equivalent will take the following two compulsory modules:

• The Landscape of Greek Prose (B): designed for students to follow on from Greek Literature for Beginners. Examines a wide range of Greek prose texts, and enhances Greek language skills through regular language classes.
• The Landscape of Greek Poetry (B): follows on from The Landscape of Greek Prose (B). Covers a diverse range of ancient poetry in the original Greek, starting with Homer’s Iliad, and enhances Greek language skills through regular language classes.

Latin

Ex-beginners in Latin will take the following two modules:

• Latin in Progress 1: builds on work covered in Elementary Latin 1 and 2. Examines a wide range of texts in both prose and verse from the Republican period, and enhances Latin language skills through regular language classes.
• Latin in Progress 2: builds on work from Latin in Progress 1. Examines a wide range of texts in both prose and verse from the imperial period, and enhances Latin language skills through regular language classes.

Students who have studied Latin to SQA Higher, GCE A-level or equivalent will take the following two modules:

• Latin Language and Literature 1: the Republic: builds on World of Latin 1 and 2. Examines a wide range of texts in both prose and verse from the Republican period, and enhances Latin language skills through regular language classes.
• Latin Language and Literature 2: the Empire: builds on Latin Language and Literature 1. Examines a wide range of texts in both prose and verse from the Republican period, and enhances Latin language skills through regular language classes

If you decide to take Classics in your third and fourth years, you will do a minimum of three modules in Greek and three in Latin, and then you can focus the rest of your Honours modules on one classical language or the other, or balance your programme with a mixture of both.

Here is a sample of Honours modules which have been offered in previous years:

• Greek poetry, including epic and tragedy
• Greek historiography, including authors like Herodotus and Thucydides
• Greek rhetoric
• Greek philosophy
• Greek history and ideology
• Greeks and barbarians
• Greek literature in the Roman Empire
• Greek prose composition
• Latin philosophical writing
• Latin didactic poetry
• Roman satire
• Latin oratory
• Late antique Latin literature
• Latin prose composition
• Senecan tragedy
• Roman epic
• Roman biography
• Latin letters
• Renaissance reception of Latin literature.

In fourth year, students may undertake a 10,000-word dissertation on a topic of their choice. This independent project enables you to develop key research skills which are desired by both prospective employers and by graduate schools offering postgraduate degrees.

The sub-honours modules listed here are the compulsory modules that students must take in order to graduate in this subject. However, most students at St Andrews take additional modules, either in their primary subject or from other subjects they are interested in. For Honours level, students choose from a range of Honours modules, some of which are listed above.