| Summary: | I teach Spartan history at the University of Leeds both as part of an introductory course about the Greek World and also as part of a range of more closely-focused Special Subject modules for second and third year undergraduates, including Image of Sparta and Classics on Screen. I use the film 300, and other modern popular culture material, in different ways in each of these modules: as a subject in its own right for Classics on Screen, focusing on questions around what the material says about contemporary culture; and, in Image of Sparta, as a coda to the course's survey of ancient ‘images’, which allows for reflection back over the ancient material. Blanshard and Shahabudin suggest that cinematic output can be ‘…an important vehicle for discussing the values, history, and cultural politics of the classical past. It demands that we think about what are the key elements that make the cultures of the ancient Mediterranean so distinctive and worthy of study’ (Blanshard & Shahabudin, 2011, p. 1). While modern popular receptions of ancient Greek history are not actually on the AS or A Level specifications (perhaps they should be!), they have some potential for teaching at this level if a teacher wants their students to get to grips with the particular topic of Sparta.
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