In this class, we will examine Roman society through the lens of its complex engagement with the natural world. For the Romans, the natural world exists as a resource to be exploited, fuel for the imagination of Roman authors, a challenge to societal development, and a site of demonstrating imperial power. Through readings on topics ranging from Roman gardens to beast fights to military engineering, students will discuss and reflect on the Romans’ relationship with the world around them and what we can learn from the Roman world as we approach the natural world today.

This course interrogates anthropocentrism and human/nonhuman animal relations through a specialized, eceocritical and ecofeminist analysis of theoretical, visual and literary texts. This program will visit the Andean highlands as well as the Galapagos archipelago.