Department of Classical Studies

We will read selections from letters by Cicero, Pliny, and Seneca along with a few letters from documentary sources. In addition we will use secondary literature to learn the methods as well as historical and cultural contexts for interpreting the letters. Letters are a literary form, and we will examine their conventions as well as the different kinds of letters that Romans wrote (e.g. personal, philosophical, literary). Letters are also a valuable source for the history of the Roman world, and we will investigate what letters tell us about politics, society, social identity, gender, and the cultural world of the Romans. Understanding the historical context in turn contributes to our understanding of the Latin language and Roman literary expression.