Articles
Professor Elena Isayev on Ancient Wandering and Permanent Temporariness
Professor Elena Isayev, Professor of Ancient History and Place at the University of Exeter and Routes coordinaor will present her paper: “Ancient Wandering and Permanent Temporariness". To move towards an understanding of displacement from within, and the forms of its overcoming, the paper will bring into dialogue the ancient experience of wandering and the 21st century condition of permanent temporariness. It will explore whether these are the same or different phenomena. And whether the latter is a uniquely modern experience. In particular, it is interested in the turning points that lead to defiance of the condition and its regime. It will trace modes of existence that subvert the liminal state and allow for possibilities of living beyond the present moment, through splintered returns and futures. Such actions, it will be argued, allow for the repositioning of the self in relation to the world, and thus the exposition of cracks within the status quo. The exploration will engage current responses to de-placement by those who have experience of the condition firsthand, especially of refugee camps in Europe and the Middle East, with ancient discourses of the outcast, as experienced by Medea, Xenophon and such philosophers as Diogenes the Cynic. In so doing, it seeks to expose the way seemingly exceptional forms of politics and existence, instead, reveal themselves as society’s systemic edge.
Fall 2020 Classical Studies Colloquium Series UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
On Zoom, please register below for the address, you need only register ONCE for the semester
Please join us for our virtual colloquium on Thursday 8th of October 2020 at 21.30-23.00 UK time when Dr. Elena Isayev, Professor of Ancient History and Place at the University of Exeter, UK, will present her paper: “Ancient Wandering and Permanent Temporariness".
Registration is required for Penn CLST colloquia this semester, you need only register ONCE for the semester.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Zoom meeting. PLEASE CHECK YOUR SPAM FILTER if you do not get an email in your inbox.
Date: 24 September 2020