Lectures are dry, discussion sections are fine, but there is a lot of reading and a weekly two page paper. Boring class, but not too difficult to succeed in if you can stay engaged.
Signed up for this course because I thought it was going to be about Greek Mythology and Athenian culture--I was so wrong. Lots of reading and weekly papers, which are not that difficult, just very tedious. The tests (one midterm and one final) only asked about 10 of the 100+ terms we learned in class, and Mikalson often selected the most obscure words to ask about. If you're taking this class just to fulfill a requirement then reconsider... If you're interested in learning about Greek History and don't mind lots of reading then this is probably the class for you.
Boring class that is not worth all of the reading and tedious and annoying sections papers a day. If you're trying to get a humanities requirement in and you aren't interested in Greek Civ. then definitely don't take this class.
Final exam was poorly written and focused on terms that weren't emphasized during the semester rather than things like the readings, religion and philosophers. Discussion was helpful for readings. Don't take this class for an easy A, the professor leaves you in the dark. There are hundreds of terms and he puts 10 on the exam, so you're screwed if those were the ones you didn't happen to memorize. The tests do not reward you for overall knowledge of course material, its a crapshoot.
Mr. Mikalson is so enthusiastic about Greek civilization, especially religion. He thoroughly enjoys teaching his students everything he knows and knows the answer to almost every question. The midterm and final are not hard, but you must do the readings if not every week at least before the final. There are section papers each week but they aren't graded and really help the reading material stick (there are quotes on the exams.) Andrew Beer is an awesome TA who is also extremely enthusiastic. He guides discussions patiently and enjoys the class. Definitely a suggested course to fulfill a humanities requirement or even just for fun!
Maybe an easy class for some, but the boredom factor wasn't worth it for me.
Mikalson is a great professor who knows his stuff well. Take his class if you're interested in Ancient Greece
Mikalson's lectures are pretty boring, and all he does is just go through slideshows at a very slow pace. A good amount of reading for this class that isn't completely related to what you learn in lecture. There was also a 1-2 page paper due each week that wasn't ever hard, but just got annoying.
I'm a Classics Major so I'm kind of biased but I really enjoyed this class. You get a basic overview of Greek history/culture and the reading is not hard at all. For the most part you read the Iliad and a lot of tragedies and comedies. Take it! Midterm and final are both manageable if you study.
Test Paper Test. entire class. very easy way to start off first year.
