ANTH-AHCL 1200H: The Trojan War: An Epic of Archaeology

This course was my favorite learning curve!

This professor was the first that did not provide any lecture notes, slides, or recordings. If I wanted to do well in the class, I HAD to go to class and I HAD to take notes. Further – they had to be good notes, there was no daydreaming time. His slides were not words to write down – they were pictures, small phrases and artifacts which he would discuss. I had never had to zone in for a class to ensure I did well to this extent before – it was hard.

In terms of content, I loved what we were discussing. I won’t lie and say I thought we would discuss the actual Trojan war a bit more (and maybe some fun ancient mythology?), but that was not the case. One thing I found incredibly interesting that we did get into was Homer and his epic writings. I have always had an interest in history, and this first-year course was a great spot to see if it was a topic I would want to spend my career in. It was not – although I did enjoy it thoroughly. History, I discovered, was more a pleasure or hobby for me rather than something I wanted to dedicate my academic world to.

A final note, one of my fondest memories from this class is sitting with a male rugby player. Throughout the semester we started trading coffees for notes, so that if one of us missed class and needed the lecture notes, the other would bring coffees for us to the next class. A small note, but a memory from my first year that I want included and to reflect upon when I remember this class.

Rose, Thorn, Rosebud

Rose: The content, Homer and the Iliad, new style of lecturing to experience. Coffees for notes trade

Thorn: New style of lecture to experience and get used to

Rosebud: Having an interesting pocket of historical knowledge – I would never know this content if not for taking this specific class. I love getting to talk about it!