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Faculty of Classics

 

Many of the most exciting questions in the contemporary study of the ancient world cannot be adequately approached by the standard techniques of philology, philosophy, history or archaeology on their own. They require approaching ancient culture simultaneously with the whole range of disciplinary tools. ‘X’ or ‘Interdisciplinary Classics’ was founded in Cambridge to explore these questions at all levels of teaching and research, and offers what has rapidly become one of the most popular groups of courses in the Faculty. It capitalizes on Cambridge's unique range of intellectual resources to provide a different sort of classical study from that offered by other departments in Britain.

For undergraduates

Each year ‘X’ offers two part II courses, each of which takes a central issue in Classics, examining it from several different angles and through diverse genres of evidence (literary, visual, philosophical, linguistic, ancient and modern). Discussion is paramount: lectures are supplemented by two-hour classes in which areas of expertise are shared and ideas tested. Courses change regularly as the most pressing questions in contemporary Classics change. On offer at the moment are ‘Idols? Imagining Gods and Heroes in the Greek and Roman Worlds’ and ‘Prostitutes and Saints’. Previous papers include ‘Myth’, ‘Cultural Identity’, ‘Personal Politics’, ‘Time’, ‘Rhetoric’, ‘The Body in Antiquity’, ‘Death’, and ‘Sexual Ethics’. Many students also elect to do their third-year dissertation in an interdisciplinary area.

For postgraduates

‘X’ teaching, and the collaborations and debates that this has fostered, have helped produce some of the finest recent research and contributed greatly to Cambridge's outstanding reputation for the application of modern approaches to the study of the ancient world. Many successful Ph.D. thesis-projects have been directly inspired by it, and many others have reflected its influence. The Faculty is exceptional in having a large number of its members working on interdisciplinary topics (many of them with a ‘reception’ angle) at any one time.

Who are we?

Initiated by John Henderson and Geoffrey Lloyd in the 1980s, the 'X' Caucus has embraced a broad cross-section of internationally distinguished scholars known for their interdisciplinary interests. Below is a list of faculty-members whose research interests fall under 'X' and who contribute to 'X' teaching.


Professor  Paul  Cartledge
A.G. Leventis Senior Research Fellow, Clare College
Emeritus A.G. Leventis Professor of Greek Culture
Dr Renaud  Gagné
Professor of Ancient Greek Literature and Religion
Fellow of Pembroke College
Director of Undergraduate Studies
Dr Ingo  Gildenhard
Professor of Classics and the Classical Tradition
Fellow and Director of Studies at King's College
Professor of Greek Literature and Culture
Fellow, King's College
Senior Lecturer in Classics (Ancient Philosophy)
Fellow and Director of Studies at Homerton College
Emeritus Regius Professor of Greek
Fellow of Trinity College
Dr Rebecca  Laemmle
Associate Professor in Classics (Greek Literature).
Fellow & Graduate Tutor, Pembroke College
Professor Martin  Millett
Laurence Professor of Classical Archaeology
Fellow of Fitzwilliam College
Professor Robin  Osborne
Professor of Ancient History
Fellow at King's College
Dr Nigel  Spivey
Senior Lecturer in Classics (Classical Art & Archaeology)
Fellow, Emmanuel College
Professor Caroline  Vout
Professor of Classics
Director of the Museum of Classical Archaeology
Fellow and Director of Studies in Classics at Christ's College
Chair of Cambridge Visual Culture
Byvanck Chair of Classical Archaeology/Art History at the University of Leiden
Professor Andrew  Wallace-Hadrill
Director of Research
Honorary Professor of Roman Studies
Dr Hannah  Willey
Associate Professor of Classics (Ancient History)
Fellow & Director of Studies in Prelim and 1A Classics at Murray Edwards
Dr Jingyi Jenny  Zhao
ISF Research Fellow, Clare Hall/Needham Research Institute

Latest news

Classics Shorts with Mary Beard: videos for schools

19 February 2023

We are thrilled to be launching Classics Shorts : a series of videos for schools introducing the ancient Greek and Roman worlds and exploring themes with continuing resonance for the modern classroom. Each film is accompanied by teaching materials for use in schools. Celebrity guests join Mary Beard and her colleagues to...

New appointment in Classical Archaeology

10 February 2023

The Faculty is delighted to announce that Dr Jane Rempel has been appointed to an Assistant Professorship in Classics from 1 September 2023. She is currently Lecturer in Classical Archaeology at the University of Sheffield.

Regius Professorship of Greek

16 January 2023

The Faculty is delighted to announce that Professor Tim Whitmarsh FBA has been elected Regius Professor of Greek from 1 April 2023. He is currently the A. G. Leventis Professor of Greek Culture in the University. Looking ahead to his new role, Professor Whitmarsh commented: ’I am thrilled and honoured to be taking up this...

Mary Beard receives THE Outstanding Achievement Award

18 November 2022

Professor Mary Beard received the Outstanding Achievement Award at the 2022 Times Higher Education Awards . The citation hailed how she had “broken through the ivory tower’s walls and brought her unique enthusiasm for her subject – and crucially, what it can teach us about contemporary life and politics – to the world”...