Public and Private Lies: Retelling the clash of duty, power and sexual indulgence in the Roman imperial court. The Australian public has a genuine and demonstrable interest in Ancient World Studies. This project offers them insight into how the ancient world constructed its political scandals. It examines the interrelationship of private acts and public conduct during the height of the Roman empire, and how personal morality was perceived to affect capability to govern. It provides a case study ....Public and Private Lies: Retelling the clash of duty, power and sexual indulgence in the Roman imperial court. The Australian public has a genuine and demonstrable interest in Ancient World Studies. This project offers them insight into how the ancient world constructed its political scandals. It examines the interrelationship of private acts and public conduct during the height of the Roman empire, and how personal morality was perceived to affect capability to govern. It provides a case study for the assessment of similar scandals in the modern world. By reading ancient perspectives on "sex", "power", and "privacy", we better understand our world and the potential for miscommunication across cultures. The project also promotes co-operation between metropolitan and regional universities in sharing resources in a national collaborative project.Read moreRead less
The republic of the demiurge: textual community and the commentary tradition in late antique Platonism. This project will add to our understanding of the content and purpose of philosophy within 'higher education' in the eastern Roman Empire in the period 300-500 CE. Since there are many ways in which the late Empire resembles our own time, this understanding illuminates the place of philosophy in what we call higher education.
The boundaries of Roman ethnicity: an examination of elite Roman ethno-cultural identity in the late-Republican and early-Imperial period (55 BCE - 120 CE). This project investigates what it meant to be 'Roman' during the vital period of transition from Republic to Empire (55BCE-120CE). It breaks new ground by focussing specifically on the Roman elite's own representation of their ethnic identity, and seeks t o establish whether a coherent ethno-cultural identity existed and how this identity va ....The boundaries of Roman ethnicity: an examination of elite Roman ethno-cultural identity in the late-Republican and early-Imperial period (55 BCE - 120 CE). This project investigates what it meant to be 'Roman' during the vital period of transition from Republic to Empire (55BCE-120CE). It breaks new ground by focussing specifically on the Roman elite's own representation of their ethnic identity, and seeks t o establish whether a coherent ethno-cultural identity existed and how this identity varied and/or changed over time. The outcome of the project will be a series of substantial publications, and the completion of two doctoral degrees, generating new insi ght into the formation and maintenance of ethno-cultural identities in a poly-ethnic society.Read moreRead less
Scripts without a stage: Roman comedy in the Early Italian Renaissance. In the early Italian Renaissance at a time when theatrical infrastructure was still lacking, rapid advances in learning and technology helped scholars to show how the Latin plays, which had only survived as teaching texts, were in fact works to be performed, eventually leading to stage revivals. This project proposes to build on the successes of an Australian team working on the Roman playwright Terence, and demonstrate the ....Scripts without a stage: Roman comedy in the Early Italian Renaissance. In the early Italian Renaissance at a time when theatrical infrastructure was still lacking, rapid advances in learning and technology helped scholars to show how the Latin plays, which had only survived as teaching texts, were in fact works to be performed, eventually leading to stage revivals. This project proposes to build on the successes of an Australian team working on the Roman playwright Terence, and demonstrate the importance of humanist scholars to intellectual history. It intends to utilise a range of historical resources, many only available in recent years through digitisation.Read moreRead less
The rediscovery of Senecan tragedy in 14th century Europe. This project aims to provide a new understanding of the emergence of classical tragedy by reassessing how classical Latin drama was revived in 14th century Europe after a long period of neglect. Classical tragedy, which incorporates the myths of the Graeco-Roman world in its fabric, was virtually unknown from late antiquity until the high middle ages when the tragedies of Seneca became popular. In the early 14th century, commentaries by ....The rediscovery of Senecan tragedy in 14th century Europe. This project aims to provide a new understanding of the emergence of classical tragedy by reassessing how classical Latin drama was revived in 14th century Europe after a long period of neglect. Classical tragedy, which incorporates the myths of the Graeco-Roman world in its fabric, was virtually unknown from late antiquity until the high middle ages when the tragedies of Seneca became popular. In the early 14th century, commentaries by Albertino Mussato and Nicholas Trevet allowed a new readership access to these complex ancient works; this analysis also provides new insights into trends of popularity across the ages. Using recent advances in digitisation technology and scholarship, the project will establish a model for research into the history of the book, the image, and text.Read moreRead less
The Ancient Today: Living Traditions of Classical Language Education. This project aims to compare, for the first time, ancient language education across world cultures with ‘classical’ literatures. It expects to illumine the purpose and value of classical language education in Chinese, Greek, Latin, and Sanskrit historically and within global education systems today by comparing pedagogic ideals and practices across times and cultures. It aims to test the potential of inclusive classical langua ....The Ancient Today: Living Traditions of Classical Language Education. This project aims to compare, for the first time, ancient language education across world cultures with ‘classical’ literatures. It expects to illumine the purpose and value of classical language education in Chinese, Greek, Latin, and Sanskrit historically and within global education systems today by comparing pedagogic ideals and practices across times and cultures. It aims to test the potential of inclusive classical language learning to boost educational outcomes for disadvantaged students. Other expected outcomes include two books, scholarly articles, education policy reports, and PhD student training. This should strengthen intercultural understanding and benefit school students, educators, policy makers and the wider public.Read moreRead less
Transformations of Terence: ancient drama, new media, and contemporary reception. This project builds on the highly successful and critically acclaimed initiatives of this team to create and disseminate digital editions of medieval manuscripts, published with international universities and presses. It will establish further the international reputation of Australian scholars in the field of classical literary studies.
Staging Sappho: investigating new methodologies in Classical Performance Reception. This project will make a significant contribution to Australia's profile as a research innovator in Arts and Humanities. It is the first research project of its kind to integrate theories of Classical reception and textual transmission with performance theory and practice. As such, it will further the knowledge base of the discipline of Classical Reception Studies by introducing a new methodology to the field, an ....Staging Sappho: investigating new methodologies in Classical Performance Reception. This project will make a significant contribution to Australia's profile as a research innovator in Arts and Humanities. It is the first research project of its kind to integrate theories of Classical reception and textual transmission with performance theory and practice. As such, it will further the knowledge base of the discipline of Classical Reception Studies by introducing a new methodology to the field, and will also benefit the community in terms of cultural engagement.Read moreRead less
Aetiana: laying foundations for the study of the history of ancient philosophy Part 2. Ancient philosophy is one of the pillars of the tradition of western thought. It has made a magnificent contribution to reflection on lasting problems in the areas of science, ethics, theory of knowledge, metaphysics and logic. The Socratic tradition of discussion on how we should live is a striking example of how ancient philosophy remains directly relevant to issues in our society today. Research that streng ....Aetiana: laying foundations for the study of the history of ancient philosophy Part 2. Ancient philosophy is one of the pillars of the tradition of western thought. It has made a magnificent contribution to reflection on lasting problems in the areas of science, ethics, theory of knowledge, metaphysics and logic. The Socratic tradition of discussion on how we should live is a striking example of how ancient philosophy remains directly relevant to issues in our society today. Research that strengthens our knowledge in this area will thus be of considerable benefit to the community. Australia will also benefit from the international scholarly cooperation and the training of younger scholars that will take place in carrying out the project.Read moreRead less
Greek drama in ancient Italy. This project aims to reconstruct how ancient Italian communities – Greek colonies, indigenous populations and Rome – appropriated Greek drama, made it part of their cultural heritage and drew upon it to create their own forms of drama. The project will document and analyse how Greek plays became a shared cultural product despite racial, social and linguistic barriers, to illuminate the significance and effect of cross-cultural exchange in antiquity. The analysis of ....Greek drama in ancient Italy. This project aims to reconstruct how ancient Italian communities – Greek colonies, indigenous populations and Rome – appropriated Greek drama, made it part of their cultural heritage and drew upon it to create their own forms of drama. The project will document and analyse how Greek plays became a shared cultural product despite racial, social and linguistic barriers, to illuminate the significance and effect of cross-cultural exchange in antiquity. The analysis of cultural negotiations in ancient Italy also aims to provide points for reflection on today’s debate on multiculturalism and globalisation.Read moreRead less