Letter from the Interim Chair

By the time you read this, I will have vacated the Chairs office, but there is still much to be done. Looking back over the past year and a half, however, I do have a certain satisfaction at what my colleagues and I have accomplished not least, in the creation (or, more exactly, the re-creation) of our website and of this newsletter, both of which are intended to convey to our friends and alumni a sense of the on-going intellectual life of our community.

During the past term, certainly the most important event for us were the Jerome Lectures by Alessandro Barchiesi, Professor at the University of Siena and Stanford University and one of the worlds foremost interpreters of Latin literature. Prof. Barchiesis lectures were concerned with mapping out a poetics of Augustan literature; he sketched the main boundaries against which this literature established itself, from self-conscious emulation of Alexandria to concern for the monumental environment that Augustus was in the process of creating. (Jay Reed summarizes the lectures later in this issue.)

Beyond these splendid lectures, we mounted two conferences. The first Platsis Symposium (on the extraordinarily timely subject of War and Democracy) featured papers by Paul Cartledge, Josh Ober, and Michael Zuckert, all of whom explored the rich legacy of Greek thought on this question; this conference, organized through our Modern Greek program, was featured in the last issue of Convivium. A one-day mini-conference on Solon, organized by Ruth Scodel, brought together several speakers (including Edward Harris, Maria Noussia, and our own Sara Forsdyke) who explored not only Solons poetry but also his political strategies and thought.

We were also enriched by lectures on an extraordinary array of subjects, from the teaching of elementary Latin (John Gardner of Brevard College) to the Roman foundation of Constantinople (John Matthews). Further, we have begun a new series of informal lectures that allow junior members of the Department to try out their ideas; so far Basil Dufallo and Arthur Verhoogt have given talks.

All this was heady intellectual fare, and the dining will continue into the new year, with a scheduled graduate student conference on the intriguing subject of Water and a one-day colloquium in memory of John DArms. (These events, which are both being supported by the Else endowment, are described elsewhere in this issue.)
Lectures and colloquia such as these create a kind of staccato rhythm in the academic year, against which the routine of courses sounds as a carefully constructed ground. Our enrollment has edged steadily upward in the past several years, in large part, I believe, because we as a department have paid careful attention to the structure of our curriculum and the content of our courses. Since last January we have enjoyed the services of Beau Case, a Field Librarian assigned by the University Library not only to oversee acquisitions of books in Classics, but also to coordinate directly with the Department in increasing our efficient use of bibliographic materials. Beau has, for instance, led us to re-institute the graduate Proseminar, a one-hour course introducing first-year students to classical scholarship. Unlike in the past, this course now also involves training in the use of electronic resources.

On the graduate level, we have also welcomed the first graduate student in the newly established Interdepartmental Program in Greek and Roman History. This program offers not only a Ph.D. degree, but also a Certificate that has been appealing to students from the two sponsoring departments (Classical Studies and History), but also from Classical Art and Archaeology and Near Eastern Studies.

Incremental changes have taken place on the undergraduate level as well, but here the most important innovation is probably the new undergraduate reading room which was created this past summer by Jackie Williams, our Undergraduate Administrator, who painted a splendid mural on one wall. The effect is to transport one instantly to the Isles of Greece a welcome trip now that winter is settling in. (Later in this issue Jackie describes other ways in which we have tried to improve the undergraduate experience.)

One common problem that has become more salient in recent years has been the financing of undergraduate and graduate students who travel to Europe or elsewhere in order to pursue their studies. Last year the Department established a new fund (named after John DArms) to defray travel expenses for graduate students, and we are considering a similar fund for undergraduates.

Finally, the Department is keenly conscious of the need to promote its links to other units. Recently Yopie Prins, an Associate Professor of English and Comparative Literature, joined us as an Adjunct Professor. A quarter of our new position in Latin Literature will also be lodged in Comparative Literature, although, because of the current budgetary situation, we will be unable to complete the search for this position until next year.

On January 1, 2003, Richard Janko will take over as Chair of Classical Studies. I join all of my colleagues in wishing him well during his tenure. He is a major addition to our department.

Bruce W. Frier
December, 2002

Index of Topics

• Letter from the Chair
• The Incas and Rome
• Life After Grad School: To Teach or Not to Teach
• Lurking in the Library
• Classics for a New Generation
• Jerome Lectures 2002
• Graduate Student Conference
• Honoring John D'Arms