Friends of Antiquity Sunday Series: the funeral oration in classical Athens

Join UQ’s Friends of Antiquity at the August Sunday Series talk, titled ‘The Funeral Oration in Classical Athens’.

 

Funeral speeches played an important role in reaffirming the collective identity of Athenians. The most famous example is the funeral oration that Pericles delivered in 430 BC.

 

In 1981, Nicole Loraux – the great French ancient historian – transformed our understanding of this literary genre with her seminal work, The Invention of Athens.

 

Join Associate Professor David Pritchard as he explains the strengths and shortcomings of Loraux's approach, and shares more recent research in order to paint a picture of a speech form that had a much greater political impact than previously imagined.

 

The talk will be followed by afternoon tea.