Breathing Life into the Ancient World by Aneirin

Breathing Life into the Ancient World by Aneirin - August 2017 Scholarship Essay

The best way to learn history is to become part of it. The most prominent memory I have of my undergraduate career was the 400-level art history course in which we not only read the play "Lysistrata," but we acted out the parts as well. Therefore, it has always been my aspiration to become a college professor that engages their students in the same manner. However, my areas of expertise have always laid in both ancient warfare and ancient religions.

The course I would teach as a college professor would be an introduction to ancient Greek history. The course layout, however, would not be comparable to any other offering of ancient Greek history. The students would engage with each other in such a way that they would have in the ancient world. The classroom would become someone's home or the agora. The students would spend a day in the life of an ancient Greek individual; their learning would take place through exposure to the culture rather than just from lectures.

The course would include religious festivals (the classroom would then become the outside of the temple), re-enactments of the wars fought throughout ancient Greece (the battlefield should take place in the outdoor area of the university, of course), philosophical debate, and, finally, the course would include the performance of ancient plays that were frequently put on in the ancient world. Participation is already woven into the course structure, so those who elect to take the course are automatically one step ahead. The readings and tests would be standard for an ancient history course, but the final project would be done in lieu of a final examination.

The final project for this course can be done by an individual or as a group projects. If students would like to pursue the option of a full-scale theatre production, they may work with different departments of the university to perform it in front of an audience for a grade. Another option would be to outfit the students in period-accurate armor and boffer weapons to re-enact one of the many wars fought by the ancient Greeks, with another group playing as the enemy soldiers. The enemy soldiers may come from the theatre students, live action role playing groups on campus, or students from another section of the history course. Students may opt to recite an ancient poem or monologue from a play if they wish to work alone for their final project. Those who are enrolled in Ancient Greek language courses may recite the piece in Ancient Greek instead if they so desire, or in both Ancient Greek and English, if they are so inclined.

History will come alive if the breath of curiosity is blown into it. The course would approach the material in an unorthodox manner, but that is why the course will stand out and be remembered by the students who chose to sign up for it. Those who come to class will not only learn about history, but they will experience it in quite a different way: they will live it.