The Classics Department is delighted to celebrate the majors who successfully completed their undergraduate studies this year: Eric Banuelos, Nia Correal, Lisbeth Gil, Bryanna Harrell, Monserrat Hernandez, Elijah Holton, Shannon Mayo, Amanda Orza, Eduardo Ruiz Felix, Michelle Woo.
Congratulations, graduates!
Chris Erdman, a PhD student in our Ancient History emphasis, has been selected as one of five Rome Prize recipients in Ancient Studies for 2023-24. During his fellowship in Rome, Chris will work on his dissertation, a “citizen’s-eye view” of the Republican legislative process entitled Voting Culture and Political Theater in Late Republican Lawmaking. Chris’ research and achievements are featured in the UCSB Current. Congratulations, Chris!
Tejas Aralere (PhD ’23) has accepted a position as Assistant Professor of Classics in the Classics, Humanities, and Italian Studies Department at the University of New Hampshire. Tejas’ interdisciplinary research, which he has pursued at UCSB in both the Classics and Religious Studies departments, examines the globalization of scientific discourse in ancient India, Rome, and Greece. At UNH, he will be teaching courses in Classics and Humanities, as well as contributing to curricula in Religious Studies and South Asian History. Congratulations, Tejas!
“Humanity and Revolution in José Fuentes Mares’ La joven Antígona se va a la guerra,” written by Andrés Carrete, one of the graduate students in the Classics department, has been published in the prestigious Classical Receptions Journal.
In this article, Andrés offers a new analysis of José Fuentes Mares’ adaptation of Sophocles’ Antigone, which premiered a week after the biggest student massacre in Mexican history, the Tlatelolco Massacre of 2 October 1968. By showing how this play differs from other Latin American adaptations of Antigone, Andrés enriches our understanding of the reception of Sophocles’ play as a response to oppression.
The article can be accessed here.
Congratulations, Andrés!
In order to reflect upon and express the feelings of grief, loss, and nostalgia caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Olga Faccani – a Ph.D. candidate in Classics – and Heena Yoon – a Ph.D. candidate in Music – have created a short film inspired by the myth of Persephone and Demeter. Titled PersAphone, the film opens with a summary of this Greek myth and then focuses on the sorrow of Demeter, whose feelings are embodied by the dancer Meri Takkinen. With their reinterpretation of this ancient story, Faccani and Yoon wanted to “create a virtual space of empathy, shared emotions, and catharsis.”
More information on this project, which has been supported by the Ancient Worlds, Modern Communities initiative of the Society for Classical Studies, can be found here.
The Classics department is pleased to announce the 2019-20 winners of the Aldrich and Civitas Awards:
The winner of the Aldrich Award for Graduate Studies is Olga Faccani. During the 2019-20 academic year, Olga has made excellent progress towards completion of the degree: she has presented to the department her significant paper – titled Philia, Trauma, and the Self: Renewal of Friendship in Euripides’ “Heracles” – and passed her oral qualifying examination. Moreover, since the summer of 2019 she has been collaborating with The Odyssey Project, a theater process between youth from a juvenile detention facility in Santa Barbara county and UC undergraduate students. She has discussed this experience in a “lightning round” talk at the most recent meeting of the Social for Classical Studies in Washington, DC.
The winner of the Aldrich Award for Undergraduate Studies is Donna Blockhus. Donna, who has been invited to join the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa society, has excelled in all the classes she has taken during her undergraduate career – be they language courses, larger lectures, or more intimate seminars. She has also made a significant contribution to the life of the department by acting as librarian of the Keith Aldrich Memorial Library.
The winner of the Civitas Award is Kalina Kazmierczak. With her enthusiasm and passion for the ancient world, Kalina has been an invigorating member of our undergraduate community: she has coordinated several meetings and activities of the Classics Club, and revived the Language Cafe, which provides students with a casual setting for working on their study of Ancient Greek and Latin.
Congratulations to all of them!
The Classics department is pleased to announce the 2018-19 winners of the Aldrich and Civitas Awards:
The winner of the Aldrich Award for Graduate Studies is Julio Vega. During this academic year, Julio has not only shown pedagogical excellence as a teaching assistant; in his significant paper, titled Animating Nature: Trees and Death in the “Iliad,” he has also demonstrated considerable scholarly maturity and originality.
The winner of the Aldrich Award for Undergraduate Studies is Miguel Sanchez Morquecho. In all the courses he has attended, Miguel has distinguished himself for his linguistic ability and his intellectual curiosity.
The winners of the Civitas Award are Donna Blockhus and Christina Barrett. Donna and Christina have been tireless advocates for Classics on the UCSB campus, as well as energizing members of our Classics Club.
Congratulations to all of them!
Vincent Shepherd graduated from UCSB in 2017 with a BA in Classics and History. He is currently a second-year law student at UC Irvine School of Law, where he serves as a staff editor for the UCI Law Review. Vincent has externed at the US Bankruptcy Court in Riverside and will be a Summer Associate at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner this summer. During a recent visit to campus, he reflected on how studying Classics has helped him succeed.
How did you decide to pursue a career in law?
I determined I wanted to go to law school during my sophomore year of undergrad. I was weighing career options at that time and I wanted to do something in which I could best apply my undergraduate majors in the professional world. Law school was the perfect option for me because it gave me the opportunity to apply many of the skills developed in undergrad towards a career with direct real-world impact.
What aspect of Classics was most helpful during the application process?
Studying Classics requires a lot of logical analysis and close reading. Latin in particular gave me some practice in detail-oriented analysis, which helped me on different portions of the LSAT.
And now that you’re in law school?
Studying Latin helped me develop the same skills used in legal analysis. When translating, you are asked analyze a passage and translate it according to the different grammatical rules. Likewise, when doing legal analysis, you have a set of rules which you are then asked to apply to a set of particular facts. Similar to how changing one letter in a sentence can yield a different translation, one minor change in a fact pattern can yield an entirely different conclusion. I think these analytical skills developed from studying Latin directly benefit me the most.
How often do you encounter Latin these days?
I might see Latin once or twice a week, depending on what classes I am taking. It helps to know what an antiquated legal doctrine translates to in order to understand what the law is, or how it got to what it is today.
What advice would you give to Classics majors who are planning to apply to law school?
Focus on your undergraduate studies and enjoy your Classics courses while you are in them. Grades are a large part of the application process. So, the more you engage in your studies, the better grades you will likely get, and the better you will likely do in the application process. The LSAT is the other major part of the application process, but you will have time to study that over summer, or when you are no longer in school if you take a gap year. Classics is a fun and interesting major. So, while you are in undergrad enjoy and engage in the material.
What advice would you give to Classics majors who are thinking about law school but aren’t quite sure?
If you are unsure whether being a lawyer is right for you, try a summer legal internship. This will give you some insights into what it’s like to be a lawyer and help you make that determination. Also, you do not need to rush into law school directly from undergrad. Many people take gap years before deciding to pursue a legal career. Take your time and think about if a legal career is right for you. However, as a Classics major, you are developing skills that will situate you for success in law school.
Vincent is available to mentor UCSB Classics majors who are interested in law school. Please e-mail Prof. Rose MacLean (maclean@classics.ucsb.edu) for more information.
Meet Chelsea Brandwein, a UCSB Classics major from Santa Monica, CA. In this video, Chelsea shares her thoughts about the major and about one of her favorite courses, “Classics 170: Pompeii,” taught by Prof. Brice Erickson.
