The latest
May 25, 2011
All been a bit quiet here of late; for some reason it’s felt like tempting fate to blog instead of work this semester. Now it’s all finished, with the last exam sat, and nothing to do but wait for the results; so here are some reflections on the last year.
I’ve been waiting a long time to study Greek art, and it was entirely worth the wait. Black-figure and archaic red-figure pots are still my favourite, but I’ve got a better appreciation of a much broader range of art now, and a good foundation for much further study. I immediately want to rush off and see some more in real life rather than on the page, which is unfortunate as I have no immediate prospects of getting to the British Museum, the Fitzwilliam, or the Ashmolean, whose exhibition on finds from Macedon looks particularly tempting.
The most rewarding subject has been my dissertation, which was an excellent exercise in scoping out a subject, doing the reading, changing direction, focusing down on the main themes, and turning it all into a reasonably scholarly piece of writing. And the finished product was a work of beauty, with spiral binding and colour illustrations! I am definitely ready to do more research, and seriously planning the best way to pursue an M.A.
I’m pleased to have done some Menander and quite enjoyed Demosthenes, but could take it or leave it. Thucydides and I have come to a grudging mutual understanding, but are in no hurry to prolong our acquaintance. I thoroughly enjoyed Wasps and was pleased to confirm that the smoke joke at line 144 is the best one in it; I’d love to see it performed, but am not holding my breath, as performances of classical drama seem to have receded again following a high point a few years ago. And rather against expectation, I think Pindar’s soft-voiced odes with silvered faces are entirely brilliant.
I have no major plans for self-improvement over the summer, but intend to find some time for relaxation rather than carving out every possible moment for work. It’s been something of a slog. But next year is a much lighter workload, and my enthusiasm is unabated.
May 27, 2011 at 1:17 pm
Well done for getting all the work done! Especially with child care to think of too. We have my little nephew here just one day a week, and it completely wipes me out for that day.
I expect you know that the British Museum has tons of very good images of their collections online, though it’s not the same as actually visiting. I don’t know anything about them myself but I went round their Greek vase gallery once with a friend who teaches Classics and it was absolutely fascinating to hear about them. The British Museum is one of the best places in the world.
May 27, 2011 at 2:51 pm
I couldn’t agree more. I was a member of the British Museum for a year once, in a previous life when I spent a lot of time in London, and it was great being able to drop in for exhibitions and lectures. The image database is wonderful, and makes me feel quietly patriotic – I don’t know any other museum that has anything as good (I also like the online database of the Allard Pierson Museum in Amsterdam, though for me it’s a bit difficult to navigate in Dutch).