Clayton High – Classical Civilizations

Mar 2026 · 2nd Semester

Classical Civilizations surveys the ancient societies of India, China, Greece, Rome, and the Americas. The course will examine the history of these cultures and the philosophy, religion, art, and literature that they produced. Students will be expected to read extensively and to discuss such works as the Upanishads, Confucious' Analects, Homer's Iliad, the Greek tragedies, and Virgil's The Aeneid. Cross-cultural contacts between these ancient societies will be emphasized, along with a close examination of the similarities and differences to be found between them. Students should leave the course with a better understanding of how events and developments in antiquity served to build the foundations for later historical developments in each of the cultures studied.