The Classics curriculum is a complete education in Classics using online materials.
Note: When there are courses or books that don't fit into the curriculum but are otherwise of high quality, they belong in extras/courses, extras/readings or extras/other_curricula.
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Forums:
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Subreddits:
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You can also interact through GitHub issues. If there is a problem with a course, or a change needs to be made to the curriculum, this is the place to start the conversation. Read more here.
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- How to use this curriculum
- I. Orientation to Classical Studies
- II. The Ancient Mediterranean World
- III. Languages of the Classical World
- IV. Classical Literature
- V. Religion, Myth, and Society
- VI. Philosophy & Science
- VII. Material Culture & Evidence
- VIII. Methods of Classical Scholarship
- IX. Late Antiquity & Transformation
- X. Reception of Classics
- Final Projects
Everyone should complete the following sections in sequence to gain a coherent foundation in the discipline:
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I. Orientation to Classical Studies
Start here. This gives you the basic context and shows how knowledge of the ancient world is constructed. -
II. The Ancient Mediterranean World
Build your historical and geographical framework. Work through the historical overviews and become comfortable using maps of the ancient world. -
III. Languages of the Classical World
Learn at least one of the two languages (Latin or Ancient Greek) to an intermediate reading level.- Choose one language to focus on seriously (most people begin with Latin because resources are slightly more beginner-friendly).
- Use the other language only as a supplement later, if time and interest allow.
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IV. Classical Literature
Read major works in the language you chose. This is the heart of Classics: direct engagement with the primary texts that have shaped Western thought.
After finishing these four core sections, you will have the essential knowledge and skills of an undergraduate Classics major: historical context, geographical awareness, working knowledge of one classical language, and firsthand experience reading the major authors.
The remaining sections are deeper or more specialized. You do not need to study all of them. Pick according to your interests after you have finished (or are very far along in) the Core:
- V. Religion, Myth, and Society: Good if you are drawn to ancient beliefs, rituals, social structures, or gender roles.
- VI. Philosophy & Science: Choose this track if you are especially interested in ancient thought, logic, ethics, or the history of science/medicine.
- VII. Material Culture & Evidence: Ideal if you love archaeology, art, architecture, visual culture, or physical evidence (coins, inscriptions, ruins).
- VIII. Methods of Classical Scholarship: For those who want to understand how classicists read, edit, and interpret texts at a professional level.
- IX. Late Antiquity & Transformation: If you are curious about the transition from classical antiquity to the early medieval/Christian world.
- X. Reception of Classics: Perfect if you enjoy seeing how ancient ideas, stories, and images have been reused in later literature, art, film, and modern culture.
| Subject | Resources |
|---|---|
| What is Classics? | Mary Beard, Classics: A Very Short Introduction |
| How we know the ancient world | Open Yale: Introduction to Ancient Greek History (weeks 1–2) |
| Subject | Book | Video |
|---|---|---|
| Bronze Age & Near East | Cline, 1177 BC (Archive.org) | Yale Ancient Near East lectures (see related context in RLST 145 lectures) |
| Ancient Greece (Archaic–Hellenistic) | Pomeroy et al., Ancient Greece (Archive.org) | Yale Greek History |
| Ancient Rome | Boatwright et al., The Romans (Archive.org) | MIT Ancient Rome |
| Geography & Maps | Talbert, Barrington Atlas Map Guide (open PDF) (see also directory info) | Digital Atlas of the Roman Empire |
| Level | Resource |
|---|---|
| Beginner → Intermediate | Ørberg, Lingua Latina per se Illustrata I–II (Archive.org) (search for specific volumes) |
| Supplement | ScorpioMartianus YouTube |
| Level | Resource |
|---|---|
| Beginner → Intermediate | Athenaze I–II (Archive.org) (search for specific volumes) |
| Supplement | Harvard Greek videos |
| Genre | Texts |
|---|---|
| Epic | Homer (Perseus, Loeb) |
| Drama | Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides (Perseus Digital Library: search by author) |
| History | Herodotus, Thucydides |
| Philosophy | Plato |
| Genre | Texts |
|---|---|
| Epic | Virgil |
| Lyric & Elegy | Horace, Ovid (Perseus: search by author) |
| History | Livy, Tacitus (Perseus: search by author) |
| Oratory | Cicero |
| Subject | Resource |
|---|---|
| Greek & Roman Religion | Oxford Handbook of Greek Religion |
| Mythology | Gantz, Early Greek Myth |
| Daily Life & Slavery | Pomeroy - Goddesses, Whores, Wives and Slaves |
| Area | Resource |
|---|---|
| Presocratics → Plato | Plato, Cooper edition (search for "Plato: Complete Works" edited by John M. Cooper) |
| Aristotle | Aristotle, Barnes Companion (see "The Cambridge Companion to Aristotle" via open previews or search Archive.org) |
| Hellenistic Schools | Long, Hellenistic Philosophy |
| Medicine & Science | Hippocrates & Galen (Loeb, Archive.org) (Loeb volumes) |
| Area | Resource |
|---|---|
| Archaeology | Biers, Archaeology of Greece |
| Art & Architecture | MIT Roman Architecture (related; full Roman architecture courses via MIT OCW search) |
| Coins & Inscriptions | Sandys, Latin Epigraphy (search Archive.org for open editions) |
| Area | Resource |
|---|---|
| Textual criticism | West, Textual Criticism and Editorial Technique (search academic previews or Archive.org) |
| Manuscripts & transmission | Reynolds & Wilson, Scribes and Scholars (Archive.org) |
| Philology | Dickey, Ancient Greek Scholarship (open PDF) (preview; full via institutional access) |
| Area | Resource |
|---|---|
| Christianity & Empire | Cameron, Mediterranean World in Late Antiquity |
| Augustine | Confessions (Perseus or http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1101.htm) |
| Neoplatonism | Plotinus (Perseus or open translations on Archive.org) |
| Area | Resource |
|---|---|
| Classical reception | Hardwick & Stray, Companion to Classical Receptions (search Oxford Academic previews) |
| Subject | Why study? | Book | Videos |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capstone Project | Produce a research thesis, annotated translation, or multimedia project using primary sources and scholarly methods. | The Chicago Manual of Style (for formatting); Writing for Classicists by Gillian Clark | Research Methods in Classics (MIT OCW) (use general humanities research guides) |
Note: Free primary texts are available via:
After completing the requirements of the curriculum above, you will have completed the equivalent of a full bachelor's degree in Classics. Congratulations!