Section Info: CLAS-318-01

Course Title: Petronius' Satyricon and the Roman Novel
Start Date: 01/27/2026 End Date: 05/12/2026
Term: Spring Semester 2026
Description: Petronius' Satyricon is one of the few surviving novels from the ancient world. Formed from a pastiche of other literary genres, including epic, comedy, and satire, it is a vivid account of the adventures of three men as they travel throughout Italy. Though fiction, and only partially extant, its realistic portrayal of Roman life offers a glimpse into the social mores in the early empire. Petronius himself was a member of Nero's court and the Satyricon a product of Nero's promotion of the arts. By giving rise to the picaresque genre the Satyricon's influence continued to be felt far beyond its own day.
Distribution(s): I - Humanities , LANG - Language
Academic Level Of Course: Undergraduate     Credits:4.00    

Faculty         Phone         Email address        
Geoffrey Sumi   413-538-2277   gsumi@mtholyoke.edu  

Meeting Dates         Method         Meeting days         Meeting times         Building name         Room     Frequency    
01/27/2026 - 05/12/2026   Seminar   Tuesday and Thursday   10:30AM - 11:45AM   TBA   TBA   Weekly

REGISTRATION DETAILS

Requisite Courses        
Prereq: 200-level Latin. Take previously   Required  

Comments        
Additional Comments        
Taught in Latin.  
Course Tags        
CLASS0001   CLAS: Classical Studies major   This course has been approved to count towards the Classical Studies major and/or minor.  
CLASS0001   CLAS: Classical Studies minor   This course has been approved to count towards the Classical Studies major and/or minor.  
CLASS0003   CLAS-LM: Classical Studies - Literary/Mythological   This course has been approved to count towards the Classical Studies major in the Literary/Mythological subject area.  

Cross-listed Sections        
None  

Course Availability
Section status: Open     Capacity: 18     Enrollment: 5     Available: 13     Waitlist: 0

BOOK INFORMATION

Book List         Required         Publisher Full Price        
To be determined.                    

Additional Book Comments        
This is NOT the complete book list for this class.