This course offers the opportunity to combine English with the complementary study of all aspects of the ancient world. Working within one of the country’s most dynamic English departments, you will be able to explore poetry, prose and drama from around the world. You’ll examine in detail the earliest writings in English, discuss the canonical texts, debate the merits of individual authors and refine your critical thinking. As you progress, your developing knowledge of English literature will be matched by your critical awareness of the most recent developments in the discipline.
At the same time, your immersion in the ancient world will be guided by the outstanding scholars of one of the country’s leading Classics departments. Here, the literature, history, philosophy and archaeology of the ancient world will be your focus and you’ll have the opportunity—should you wish—to extend this through the study of the Latin and Greek languages. As you will discover, the two elements of your degree will continuously reinforce one another, enabling you to see the connections between the classical period and those who came after. From Homer to Joyce and Sophocles to Freud, Shakespeare’s reworking of the tragic form and the modern myth-making of T.S. Eliot and Angela Carter, these multiple connections will surprise and compel in equal measure.
