“New Perspectives on the Ancient World” speaker series
The term “Ancient History” has long overlapped with the term “classical antiquity,” usually thought of as the history of the ancient Mediterranean and its environs, focusing particularly on the Greek world from the 8th c. BCE, then on Rome and its empire through the 5th c. CE. In recent years there has been considerable debate in academia about the definition of these terms, the nature of the curriculum in History programs, and the history of the curriculum itself. These debates have arisen alongside discussions of the roles that race, gender, class, and the effects of colonialism have had in determining how history is defined and what history is studied. Classicists and historians of classical antiquity have responded variously to these debates—some by defending the canon; others by expanding it; still others, by arguing that the study of classical antiquity as it is currently defined should be abolished entirely and replaced—but with what?
Mary Jaeger, UO Classics, and Vera Keller, UO History, have developed a year-long lecture series “New Perspectives on the Ancient World” to address these concerns. This project has four major aims: to illustrate more diverse and inclusive approaches to and definitions of antiquity, including diverse disciplinary approaches and geographical areas of focus; to present a more representative account of ancient history broadly defined; to build community between scholars of the ancient world who are currently scattered across disciplines at UO, in the humanities and social sciences; and to offer rich programming on the ancient world to our community.
Some may ask why universities should invest in the study of the ancient world. The answer lies partly in how a deep and broad understanding of our shared and diverse human histories can best equip us in facing tomorrow. The study of the deep past shows us how current historical phenomena that may seem eternal and unchangeable, like capitalism, color-line based racism, and worldwide Christianity, have in the past manifested very differently or not at all. Humanity has faced massive challenges and been convulsed by wide scale change many times before. Such views help us to understand that the present is also not unique, but shaped by our choices, and continually changing as we move forward together into an uncertain future.
Two talks will be held in Fall term. On November 1, 2022 Sarah Bond, History, University of Iowa, speaks on “Royal Purple and Indigo: The Hidden Labor Behind Luxurious Dyes “ at 3:30 p.m. in 375 McKenzie Hall. From diamonds to coal to Tyrian purple to indigo, the workers who create luxury goods often do not enjoy the same status as their products. This lecture looks at the archaeological and literary evidence for these often-invisible workers in order to reconstruct the lives of ancient dye workers, while also reminding us of the enslaved labor that continues to create the products we use or the buildings we admire even today.
Luke Habberstad, Early Chinese Literature and Religion, UO, will give a talk titled “’We Would Have Become Fish!’: Ecological Transformations and the Human-Environment Relationship in Early Imperial China” on Tuesday, November 15, 2022 at 3:30 p.m. in 375 McKenzie Hall. The Han empire in early imperial China sponsored hydraulic engineering projects along the Yellow and Yangtze rivers that resulted in ecological stress and environmental destruction that led to court debates to reassess the relationship between humans and the world around them. While far from our contemporary notions of environmental sustainability and awareness, these debates for the first time deemed ecological systems to be objects of potential manipulation and analysis.
The lecture series, cosponsored by the OHC’s Endowment for Public Outreach in the Arts, Sciences, and Humanities, will host two more guest scholars in addition to two UO scholars in winter and spring terms. For more information go to history.uoregon.edu/events.