Alexander the Great under the sea

ECL 565: Legends of Alexander the Great in the Global Middle Ages

Course Description:

The figure – both historical and imagined – of the Macedonian ruler Alexander the Great (356 BCE-323 BCE) is among the most persistent cultural icons and has long served as an example for a wide range of positive and negative moral characteristics. In various contexts Alexander has been criticized for his greed, pride, and excessive ambition but also lauded for his deference to wisdom, generosity to those he conquered, as well as his political and military prowess. Though the earliest accounts by contemporaries of Alexander have been lost, the Macedonian ruler’s legend was already in development in his lifetime, quickly spread throughout the globe, and became deeply intertwined with local histories. The development and re-configuring of Alexander’s image and legacy has also been repeatedly used to support and legitimize the goals of empire, to bolster political figures, and to regulate morality. The last decade or so has witnessed a renewed interest in the copious amount of Alexander literature from the Global Middle Ages, including a major exhibit Alexander the Great: The Making of a Myth at the British Library from October 2022-February 2023. In this class students will encounter legends of Alexander preserved in a variety of languages across the medieval globe (including, for example, Greek, Latin, English, French, Persian, Arabic, Hebrew, Old Norse-Icelandic, German, Spanish, and Ethiopic). This is a T/TH hybrid class (paired with ECL 510A). This class will meet one day a week in person (Thursdays) and one day a week asynchronously online (Tuesdays). In-person class meetings will focus on lectures with some discussion. On asynchronous online class days students will focus more on collaboration and discussion, but additional content (lecture videos/audio, links to other materials) will be provided.

Outline of Course Schedule:

  • The Earliest Legends

  • The Classical and Early Medieval Traditions

  • The Greek Alexander Romance

  • Alexander in Persian and Arabic Sources

  • The Syriac, Coptic, and Ethiopic Alexander Literature

  • Alexander in Hebrew Texts

  • Alexander in Medieval Europe