Humanities 110

Syllabus - Fall 2026

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Course Logistics

REQUIRED TEXTS

• Apuleius. The Golden Ass. Trans. Sarah Ruden. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2011.
• Berlin Adele, and Mark Zvi Brettler, eds. The Jewish Study Bible: Tanakh Translation. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press 2014 
• The Epic of Gilgamesh the Babylonian Epic Poem and Other Texts in Akkadian and Sumerian. Trans. Andrew George. London: Penguin Classics, 2003.
• Herodotus. The Histories. Trans. Aubrey de Selincourt. London: Penguin, 2003. 
• Lucretius Carus, Titus. On the Nature of Things. Trans. Walter G. Englert.  Indianapolis: Focus, 2003.
• “The Tale of Sinuhe” in The Tale of Sinuhe and Other Ancient Egyptian Poems 1940-1640 B.C. Ed. R.B. Parkinson. London: Oxford University Press, 2009. 21-53.
• Plato, Republic, trans. Reeve (Hackett)
• Euripides, Euripides I, ed. David Grene and Richmond Lattimore (University of Chicago Press)
•  

Additional assigned texts are available on e-reserves accessible via links embedded in the syllabus below. You will need your Reed username and password to access these texts. Please bring a copy of the day’s reading assignment to class each day. The library has on reserve a limited number of the required books.

​​LECTURES
On most Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays of the semester, a lecture is assigned. On many Mondays (weeks 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14) and on the very first and last Wednesdays of the semester, these lectures are delivered in-person, and for these lectures we will meet in Vollum Lecture Hall at 9:00 am. Please be on time; the moments when we all gather together as a unified class are important. In-person lecture days are flagged on the syllabus. The other lectures will be posted so they can be accessed online; you can review these when it is most convenient to do so, but, obviously, do so before your conference meeting. Some of these lectures have been reused from last year, but, of course, only when still relevant. Lecture are regularly updated.

CONFERENCE ASSIGNMENTS
Humanities 110 is a yearlong course, and students are expected to remain in the same conference throughout the year. In cases of absolutely unresolvable schedule conflicts, students may petition for a change of conference time. Petitions (in the form of an email) should be addressed to Sonia Sabnis including an explanation of the conflict and why it cannot be resolved. Students granted a change of conference time will be assigned to new sections based on available slots and the student’s schedule; requests to move into a particular conference generally cannot be honored.

PAPERS AND WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
Four course-wide papers will be assigned in the fall semester, due at the times designated on the syllabus. Individual conference leaders may assign additional writing. If the due date for an assignment conflicts with a religious holiday or obligation that you wish to observe, please consult with your conference leader. Over the course of the semester, students are also required to submit at least three conference discussion questions, in writing, to their conference leader. Due dates for these questions are determined by individual conference leaders.

DISABILITY ACCOMMODATIONS
If you have a documented disability requiring accommodations, please contact Disability Support Services. Notifications of accommodations on exams, papers, other writing assignments, or conferences should be directed to your conference leader. Notifications of accommodations regarding lectures can be directed to the chair of the course, Sonia Sabnis. You are advised to consult with your conference leader about how your accommodations might apply to specific assignments or circumstances in this course.

RESOURCES FOR SUPPORT
Your conference leader is your first line of support for any questions you have about the course. Please also be sure to explore the Hum 110 website for additional information. The Course Resources entries provide brief introductions to upcoming readings and suggestions for how to approach them. The Writing in Hum 110 page provides tips on the writing process.

To support your success in HUM 110, we  encourage you to sign up for tutoring early in the semester. Tutors can help you not only with course content but also with developing essential skills such as critical reading, and analytical writing skills. There are two main tutoring resources available.

•  Writing Tutors: Our writing tutors are here to help you with all aspects of your
  writing, from brainstorming and organizing your ideas to refining your final drafts.
  (Type “Writing” in the search for a course tutor box.)
•  HUM 110 Tutors: These tutors are specialized in helping you understand the
  course material and improve your overall study skills. They can assist with both
  content-specific questions and general academic skills. (Type “Hum 110” in the
  search for a course tutor box.)

Students are eligible for one free hour of individual tutoring per course, per week. In addition, they may receive one free hour of one-on-one writing tutoring per week. We recommend scheduling regular sessions with a tutor to build a consistent support system throughout the semester. These sessions can be scheduled well in advance of the papers, for example. Further information on tutoring is available here.

Drop-in Writing Tutors. If you need immediate assistance or have a quick question, there are also drop-in tutoring hours for the Writing Center, with extra hours scheduled around Hum papers. Drop-in hours for the Writing Center are posted here. Drop-in tutoring is free.