Classical Studies

Dickinson offers a full range of courses in Latin and Greek, as well as courses in ancient history, archaeology, classical philosophy, and classical literature in translation. An active student community fosters the classics on campus through various events, a Latin club for school students, the Classics House, the annual Classics Festival, and the Eta Sigma Phi honor society. Almost all majors spend time overseas, usually in Rome or Athens. The department sponsors the annual Roberts Lectures, a series of digital projects created collaboratively by faculty and students, and a series of workshops for teachers, the Dickinson Latin Workshops and the Conventiculum Dickinsoniense, a spoken Latin immersion.

Classical Studies Blog

Nero’s Forgiveness: The depiction of a Tragic Emperor in Nero (2004)

Luke Nicosia (’21) discusses the surprisingly sympathetic portrait of the Roman emperor Nero that emerges from a 2004 film by British Director Paul Cohen released on television in the Imperium series. Nero is the second installation in the Imperium series; originally planned as a six-film series based on the history of the Roman empire, only […]

Cleopatra (1963)

The sexualization of Cleopatra in Joseph Mankiewicz’s 1963 screen epic does scant justice to Cleopatra’s political stature and acumen, argues Isabella Jurcisin (’20) Plot Outline The film opens with Julius Caesar, played by the esteemed Rex Harrison, looking down upon the lifeless bodies of soldiers after the bloody Battle of Pharsalus. This battle had […]

Faith and Spectacle: Examining Quo Vadis (1951)

Claire Jeantheau (’21) argues that Quo Vadis is part well-intentioned message on religious devotion, part reflection of an era of global conflict, and part entirely empty spectacle. PLOT OUTLINE It is 64 AD, and Rome’s 14th Legion is returning home on the Appian Way after fighting against an uprising in Britain, led by commander Marcus Vinicius […]

Dickinson College Commentaries Blog

Filipe Binh: Latin from 19th century Vietnam

In The Portuguese Seaborne Empire 1415-1825 (New York: Knopf, 1969), Charles Boxer mentions the Vietnamese priest Filipe Binh, alias Filipe do Rosario, who wrote extensively in Vietnamese, Portuguese, and Latin. Boxer is discussing the institution of the Portuguese Padroado, by which the Portuguese monarchs exerted direct control over the missions in the Portuguese imperial sphere, and excluded missionaries […]

Ancient Sources for Hypatia and Agora

I am teaching the film Agora (2009) for the second time this year in my class Ancient Worlds on Film. Despite some considerable hunting I have not been able to find a convenient collection of the ancient sources on the fascinating philosopher and mathematician Hypatia of Alexandria, the subject of the film. Since comparison of film […]

ΗΣΦ 90th Annual Convention Schedule

ΗΣΦ is the college honorary society for classical studies, and Dickinson is proud to be hosting their 90th annual this weekend. Here is the schedule! Friday, March 23rd 5:00-7:00pm, Great Room, Allison Hall Registration and Reception Light refreshments will be provided before the formal program begins 7:00-9:00pm, Great Room, Allison Hall Opening Remarks and Certamen […]