In order to understand how architecture speaks to us, how it conveys metaphysical value judgments, it is important to survey the history of architecture and see how each era's buildings reflected the culture's prevailing philosophy and sense of life. This course will cover the first half of that history, from the achievements of the Ancient Greeks, as seen against the backdrop of Egyptian architecture, through the Roman, early Christian and Medieval periods, to the rediscovery of Classical principles in the Renaissance. Although none of these eras rejected traditional styles of ornament, this course will show how the Howard Roarks of those eras made heroic advances within their historical context toward a rational, pro-man architecture.