In this course, we explore Ovid’s tale of Latona (mother of Apollo and Diana) and the pitiless Lycians who refused water to the goddess and her thirsty children; the result of Latona’s wrath has inspired myriad works of priceless art—most notably, the “Latona Fountain” at Versailles.     

In Greco-Roman mythology, xenia (hospitalium, in classical Latin), is the custom—considered a moral obligation—of offering protection and hospitality to strangers (its opposite: xenophobia). Often translated as “guest-friendship”, the practice was considered so fundamental to civilized society that its patron was Zeus Xenios, “Zeus, the god who protects strangers.”  In addition to discussing Ovid’s text in its ancient and modern social contexts, we will also view the myth through the lens of current feminist criticism.

For those with little or no Latin, the use of bilingual (Latin-English) texts, provided by the instructor, serve as introduction to (or review of) basic grammar and vocabulary, while offering more advanced students practice in reading authentic Latin poetry.

Text: All required materials will be supplied by the instructor. Recommended Texts (available on-line from Amazon): Using Latin, Book 1 (Annabel Horn, John Flagg Gummere, Margaret M. Forbes; Scott, Foresman and Company, 1961), ISBN: B000YFU2GI; Wheelock's Latin, 7^th Edition (2011), ISBN-10: 0061997218/ISBN-13: 978-0-061-99721-1; Ovid III: Metamorphoses Books 1-8: Loeb Classical Library (Harvard University Press–Bilingual edition, 1977), ISBN: 978-0-674-99046-3; (available on-line from Balin Books): Collins Gem Latin Dictionary (Latin-English/English-Latin: Collins, 2018), ISBN: 978-0-00-821861-4.      

NOTE: Students who register for this course may take it in-person and/or on-line (at no extra cost to those who attend both sessions).