Assistant Professor of Classical Studies
Cicero and the Early Latin Poets
Originally from Glasgow, Scotland, I received my BA in Literae Humaniores from Oxford University, and my Ph.D. from the University of Southern California. My area of specialty is the literature and culture of the late Republic, with a particular interest in Roman intellectual life. In my most recent work, I study the fragments of early Latin poets (such as Ennius, Pacuvius, Accius) which are preserved for us to read only because they were quoted by later Roman writers, such as Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BCE).
At BU, I regularly teach World of Rome and Women in Antiquity; I have also taught a class on applying digital techniques to ancient texts, and I teach Latin at all levels.
I believe that academics should be a part of the project that is the internet – to get a sense of my vision of how this might work, read: Twitter for Classicists. I co-authored a how-to guide for live-tweeting academic conferences on the SCS blog, and also run the Classics and Social Justice blog and Twitter. I have also written for the popular Classics blog, Sententiae Antiquae; “Ipse dixit: Citation and Authority.” You can also hear me on the Emperors of Rome and Itinera podcasts.
Recent publications include, “Stoicism in the Stars: Cicero’s Aratea in the De Natura Deorum,” Latomus (2018), and “Staging Roman Slavery in the Second Century BCE,” Ramus (forthcoming).