7.0382 Augustine Seminar Begins Jan 10 (1/63)
Elaine Brennan (EDITORS@BROWNVM.BITNET)
Sun, 9 Jan 1994 21:55:50 EST
Humanist Discussion Group, Vol. 7, No. 0382. Sunday, 9 Jan 1994.
Date: Sun, 9 Jan 1994 12:50:57 -0500 (EST)
From: jod@ccat.sas.upenn.edu (James O'Donnell)
Subject: Augustine: The Seminar
SPECIAL NOTE: THIS SEMINAR BEGINS MONDAY 10 JANUARY. IF YOU SIGN UP LATE,
YOU *MUST* READ THE MESSAGES POSTED TO THE GOPHER ON 10 JANUARY TO AVOID
CONFUSION
AUGUSTINE
The Seminar
(Please repost)
As foretold on most of these lists a few weeks ago, I am to
conduct a course this spring targeted at beginning graduate
students designed to introduce the thought and works of Augustine
of Hippo. This course, taught in the usual way at the University
of Pennsylvania, will also be opened to an Internet audience. By
signing up for the listserv (instructions below), you may
participate in all discussions. No prerequisites. I expect
Internet participants to resemble the Internet humanist community
generally, ranging from smart undergrads eager to learn to wise old
professors still eager to learn.
Topics in the course will broadly cover main issues and major
works of Augustine. A syllabus will be posted next week.
"Influence" will be addressed indirectly, but I hope to follow on
the seminar with an "interscripta" seminar (through the courtesy of
the organizers of that medtextl-based enterprise) that would be
expressly devoted to Augustine's influence: that should happen in
late spring.
The pattern will be roughly this: On Sunday evening, I will post
materials preliminary to the Monday afternoon liveware seminar. On
Monday evening, students in the liveware seminar will take turns
posting minutes of the day's discussions. The Internet discussion
will then continue through the week. In addition, we hope to
experiment with a MOO-based method of arranging "live" on-line
discussion through the net. (No MOO-experts at this end: if
anyone interested in the course has worked in a MOO environment,
I'd be glad for a little advice and encouragement.)
There is also already a gopher entry on the gopher at
ccat.sas.upenn.edu (menu 7, Course Materials, then menu 3,
Classical Studies, then menu 2, Latin 566: Augustine [in the same
folder, Classical Studies 28, The Worlds of Late Antiquity, is an
undergraduate course I teach; the listserv for that is closed to
the liveware students in the room, but there will be some
interesting things on the gopher]), which contains an English
translation (by E.B. Pusey) of the *Confessions* of Augustine,
shortly to be WAIS-indexed, and will contain other "handouts".
First meeting of the liveware class is Monday, 10 January, so it
is time to begin subscribing. Simply send an e-mail message to
listserv@ccat.sas.upenn.edu and say in it only SUBSCRIBE AUGUSTINE.
To remove yourself from the list, do likewise but say only
UNSUBSCRIBE AUGUSTINE.
Textbooks on order for the course include Peter Brown's biography
of Augustine, Brown's *Body and Society*, my own *Augustine* in the
Twayne World Authors Series, and Gillian Clark, *Augustine: The
Confessions* (new in paperback from Cambridge Press); laying hold
of copies of Confessions, City of God, On Christian Doctrine, and
whatever other works of A. appeal to you would be a good
precaution.
Jim O'Donnell
Department of Classical Studies
University of Pennsylvania
jod@ccat.sas.upenn.edu