About The Project

We are a group of ten 3rd year students studying Classics at the University of Edinburgh. For the Classics' Open Day on the 21st of June 2002 we are staging a presentation on various aspects of the Greek Symposium, which is a Greek drinking party. By showing the lighter side of the Classics degree we hope to allow potential students to overcome any negative preconceived ideas and to encourage them to study Classics. We are also providing a valuable and informative resource, accessible world wide through the internet, for people wishing to find out about the symposium. The main aim of the presentation is to offer a rounded insight into what a Classics degree at Edinburgh University has to offer.

As well as discussing the Greek symposium we will investigate Roman and Etruscan developments and provide a comparison with modern day drinking habits. We will give a background to the symposium by looking at their Homeric origins before moving on to cultural, political and social aspects. In order to supply a wide range of information we have each chosen a topic to study in detail. These are:

Origins
The Homeric background to the Greek symposium.

Mythology
The role of Dionysus in the symposium.

Gender
An examination of the different roles accorded to men and women at the symposium.

Ritual
An analysis of the ritualistic side of the symposium.

Food and Drink
A summary of Greek foodstuffs and the sort of food and drink consumed at the symposium.

Entertainment
An insight into the games, musical instruments and sexual activities which all formed an essential part of the symposium.

Architecture, Furniture and Clothing
Practical considerations of the symposium.

Drinking Vessels
A discussion of the different vessels used at the symposium and their functions.

Etruscan and Roman developments
A cultural comparison.

Social and Political aspects of the symposium
The serious subtext to a night of drunken revelery.

Conversation and Philosophy
The sympotic dialogue

Bibliography
Resource of all the materials consulted for the presentation.

Kerry McMillan