Classics and the Humanities: What is the Future?

Two and a half millennia ago, Socrates taught us that the essence of meaningful civilization is the examined life. The study of classics is one of liberal art’s most potent vehicles for this pursuit. It provides rigorous technical training, immerses us in superb literature and art, and is the basis of sophisticated historical, political and philosophical study.

Recognizing that Classics are at the core of education, the College of Arts and Sciences elevated the discipline to departmental status in 2008, creating the youngest Classics department in the nation. Come and examine what is happening in the Classics department today at an upcoming symposium focused on the question, “Humanities Through Classics: What Does the Future Hold?” Hosted by the University of Miami Center for the Humanities and the Department of Classics, the event will be held from 9:30 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 25, 2011 in the UM CAS Gallery/Wesley House at 1210 Stanford Drive in Coral Gables, Florida.

“The conference will provide a greater sense of what the study of Classics is about, what it can offer for the new millennium and, in a broader sense, how and why the humanities are vital to the mission of higher education,” says Classics department founding chair John Kirby. Classics prepare students and life-long learners to examine critical issues in law, business, medicine, sports, politics and culture. Its emphasis on literature and writing develops critical communication and analytical skills that are essential to the complex problem solving demanded by the modern world. “I chose the topic of the conference to make it inviting to everyone,” says Kirby.

Participants can attend morning or afternoon sessions, or the full day. The schedule, including a list of speakers and topics, is available online. Morning sessions showcase members of the UM community from the Classics, Religious Studies and English departments. The afternoon roundtable discussion features high profile individuals in the discipline, including former dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Michael Halleran, Classicist and provost of the College of William and Mary; Shadi Bartsch, Ann L. and Lawrence B. Buttenwieser Professor of Classics at the University of Chicago; Gregory Nagy, Francis Jones Professor of Classical Greek Literature and professor of Comparative Literature at Harvard University; and Patrice Rankine, associate professor of classics and assistant head of the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures at Purdue University.

The event is open to the public. Refreshments will be served, and live music by internationally known concert pianist, Leonard Reina, will close the day. For more information, including panelist bios, visit the symposium’s web site: humanities.miami.edu/symposia/classics.