Classical Civilisation

Preparation for studying A level Classical Civilisation

The school has access to the National Theatre Archive and as a result we have access to some of their performances of Classical plays, for instance Antigone, and Medea.

These will give you a flavour of Greek mythology and the themes that were prevalent in their thinking.

Whilst you need to be wary of the historical accuracy of some films it is always worth watching the following to get a flavour of the Classical World: Gladiator, 300, Alexander, Troy, Ben Hur, The Eagle.

You may also want to watch Troy: Fall of a City available on Clickview and on NetFlix

In Clickview if you go to the Classical Studies Library you will find a range of documentaries that are worth watching.

Particularly recommended are: Who Were the Greeks? Part 1 and Part 2; Meet the Romans with Mary Beard Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.

Students often find that it is useful to read some of the Myths of the Greeks and Romans. We would thoroughly recommend Stephen Fry’s Books Mythos and Heroes as easy to read and interesting retellings of the mythology.

Take a virtual tour of various museums around the world:

• British Museum on Google Arts & Culture

• The Athenian Acropolis Museum on Youtube

• The Capitoline Museums in Rome

Or take a virtual tour of ancient sites

• The Athenian Acropolis

• Rome

• Pompeii

• A Roman villa

• Vindolanda Fort near Hadrian’s Wall

A Level Classical Civilisation OCR H408

World of the Hero – study of two Epic Poems grounded in the Trojan War

1. The Iliad – the story of a small portion of time in the tenth and final year of the War when the Greeks head towards victory

2. The Aeneid – the story of the survivors of Troy leaving to found a new people and city in Italy

Imperial Image – how did the first emperor of Rome, Augustus, create a public image for himself

Greek Religion – the beliefs and ideas that drove Greek religious worship and challenged tradition