HIEU 2031

This class has a heavy reading load, and much like most history classes, the exams and papers are challenging. However Lendon is an extremely engaging lecturer and the material is interesting. The discussions are a waste of time, but overall I would recommend the class.

Professor Lendon is definitely energetic and his lectures are certainly entertaining. With regards to content, his lectures can be said to complement the readings, and occasionally lend some analytical insight into the "so what?" questions. The material is pretty interesting and the course is definitely concentrate on the political developments rather than the arts and philosophy.

The material can be tough because one is required to have a strong grasp of a lot of little details. I would caution students with extensive backgrounds in history to take a special note of the need to learn all theses details. After a couple of years of taking upper level courses that don't stress learning a bunch of dates, locations, names etc., it is tough to bring oneself to actually commit to learning 25 words a week.

Overall, a worthwhile course that was entertaining. I would just caution people against taking it to lightly, as I did.

Lendon was an absolute pleasure. He is a brilliant, charismatic, bombastic, and hilarious educator. He presents the material in such an entertaining way and has an idiosyncratic interpretation of historical events that adds an extra element. That being said, most of the grading is done by the TAs (except for the unlucky few who had their papers graded by Lendon so he could show the TAs how to do it properly,) and so your final evaluation lies mostly on how lax or easy of a grader they are. My TA was definitely very chill. With that came what seemed to be little preparation on his part for discussions. Discussion section topics were pretty much left up to the students, to as questions and voice opinions, etc. However, Mr. Tennant was very nice and helpful with papers, matters outside of class. To do well in this class, you have to do well on the mid-term and final, which are very formidable exams. However, Lendon does require you to buy a study guide that lists all of the terms, essays, and works you need to be acquainted with to do these finals. As long as you do the reading each week (which can be petty demanding,) and go over the study sheets the week you go over the material, you should be good.

This is an excellent class. Lendon makes lectures into storytelling, which is super interesting. Basically, he's like acting out plays on Greek history. Names and terms can get overwhelming if you are not used to them, but he always put them into context to make memorization easier. Overall, I'd highly recommend this class, I look forward to going to class every week (I'm not a history nerd, and I don't usually have high hopes for history classes). I have all the books you might need, contact me if interested: danli_meng@hotmail.com

Amazing lecturer, he makes the class fun and keeps lecturees attentive. Grades are another thing, the midterm, essay, and final account for about 85% of the class alone, bomb one of these.......goodluck...not particularly hard if you're interested in Greek History and enjoy reading.

Excellent professor, very knowledgeable and really makes Greek history entertaining. Lectures are extremely interesting, fun, and informative. Professor Lendon truly makes this class enjoyable for students. But be weary, the reading is often grueling. Many hours are spent reading one topic, and the test are difficult truly testing your knowledge.

I really really loved this class. I was very lenient on taking it at first, but I am so glad I took it because it became my favorite class this semester! It definitely is A LOT of reading- but in my opinion it was all worth it. Lendon is absolutely fantastic. His lectures are entertaining and funny. My advice is to do the reading and know the vocab in order to be prepared for discussion and possible pop quizzes in section. The midterm and final require a lot of studying but if you memorize the IDs and know the readings you should be fine. I thought I failed the paper but I got an A-. Definitely write the first paper, it tends to be graded easier.

Lendon is a fantastic professor; the guy knows his Stuff, just google him on the internet. He's passionate about his subject and his lectures almost feel like a story. Without a doubt, he's been my favorite history professor here at UVA just because he makes Greek History come to life. Of course, the subject matter is also very interesting; everything that happens in Greek history feels like it could come out of a novel, and this class is a must-take for any true hellenophile. That being said, the class does take some work. The reading each week, while sometimes unnecessary, can amount to several hours worth of work, and students must prepare themselves for discussion each week both by reading primary sources to be able to get participation points and by memorizing ID terms in case of a pop quiz. There is one, 8 page paper for the entire semester (or two if you would like extra credit) which requires studying a large amount of either Thucydides' or Herodotus' history text. Lendon always seems to choose equally good TA's who are quite nice and willing to help, so if one can get most of their paper done about five days before the due date, the TA's are perfectly willing to read through it and mark everything that is wrong/needs improvement, thus making getting an A on the paper quite easy. Overall, Lendon's class requires work; only one or two students per semester will get an A, and about ten or less will get an A-, but if you put in the work, go to lecture and discussion, and love the subject, it's almost difficult to get below an A-. For those who love history, I highly suggest this class.

DO NOT BE SCARED AWAY BY THIS MAN OR YOU WILL LOSE OUT. Professor Lendon tries to weed-out the class on the first day by reading course evaluations about how sadistic he is. And make no mistake- the class is very challenging, one of the more challenging history courses you can take. Lendon may intimidate you at first, but he really grows on you as he begins each lecture with some crazy anecdote, and demonstrates his passionate knowledge of Greek history every time he opens his mouth to teach. He is a nice and helpful professor who really loves his subject matter. Lectures are like story time and they are absolutely fascinating (and occasionally epic). As for the work-load: Do not bother reading the textbook, it is only there in case you miss lecture (though it is helpful for writing out the ID's). You spend your time every week reading the primary source material for discussion section, as well as memorizing the week's ID's in case of a pop quiz. You must also be aware of Herodotus and Thucydides- both of which you will have to read significant portions of. (Lendon says you are to read the entirety of both, but I found you could get by reading only the assigned portions for your paper(s).) Grades are based on a midterm, a final, and a 7-page paper (or two, if you seek extra credit). The midterm and final have the same format, consisting of 3 sections: ID's (which you write out using the textbook and memorize), passage ID's (which are taken from the primary source materials), and essays (for which you study you notes from lecture). The paper takes a solid effort- though if you finish a few days early, the TA's are more than happy to read them over and make recommendations. I had David for my TA. Very smart and helpful, I would highly recommend him. I've also heard he's a much more generous grader than Nick. Bottom line for the course: Very challenging, but very rewarding. Highly recommended for anyone who likes history, especially European history.

Lendon has been my favorite professor so far at UVA. He is an engaging lecturer who will instill his passion for Ancient Greece in even the most unwilling learner. Not as scary as he appears on the first day, especially if you go to office hours; he is really nice and likes getting to know his students. You need to do a lot of work if you want an A, but it is possible.