The first week of teaching went by in a flash!
I hope that all our undergraduates and postgraduates enjoyed their classes. On Monday afternoon, I was delighted to be able to introduce Antonia Aluko to her Beginners Latin class. Antonia is an alumna of the Department (BA and MA) and is currently conducting PhD research on intersectionality and magic in Latin literature. We are delighted that she is coming back to the department to teach Latin at the Department where her own journey with Latin language and literature started. I hope that I will be able to persuade her to contribute to one of our forthcoming newsletters.
Earlier this week, I emailed students and staff asking for contributions to this week’s “Classics News” and I was overwhelmed by the response. This week we have contributions from:
- Dr Siobhan Chomse, on the felling of the Sycamore Tree on Hadrian’s Wall
- Beth McCowen on the SU magazine, The Orbital
- Dr Efi Spentzou who is reflecting on her return to teaching after her sabbatical.
The Sycamore Tree on Hadrian’s Wall…
Northumbrian Dr Siobhan Chomse was heartbroken on Thursday to learn of the loss of the iconic tree at Sycamore Gap on Hadrian’s Wall. The tree was felled overnight in an act of what appears to have been senseless vandalism. If you have ever visited Hadrian’s Wall you will no doubt remember the tree as well as the Roman sites at Vindolanda and Housesteads. Though a mere sapling compared to the ancient Wall, the tree had been part of its history and of the beautiful Northumbrian landscape for 300 years. It will be sadly missed.
The Student Union’s magazine, The Orbital: an appeal to our Classics students
Beth McCowen, an English and Classial Studies students appeals to the Classics students to contribute to The Orbital:
“The Orbital is the official publication of Royal Holloway Student’s Union. Our magazine is released in print editions twice a term, and our website is regularly updated with new articles and features. The magazine is comprised of six main sections: News, Opinion, Lifestyle, Culture, Creative Writing, and Sports.
We would love to receive more submissions from Classical Studies students at RHUL. Whether you write reviews, short stories, poetry, political analysis or anything in between, The Orbital wants to read and publish it.
This year, our student media outlet is striving to work more closely with departments across the School of Humanities to provide social, networking and career-driven opportunities to our members. The ever-growing team of designers, editors, writers, photographers, illustrators welcomes new additions to our community! You don’t have to have any previous experience, but if you are even remotely interested in journalism, digital literature, or writing of any kind, The Orbital could be the perfect place to start having your work published! Please email orbital@royalholloway.su to register your interest.
Dr Efi Spentzou reflects on her return to teaching
“It was really great coming back to the hustle and bustle of the start of term. I had wondered whether it would feel a little odd this time since I missed (well, maybe not the right word…) the start of term in September 2022 as I was on research leave. I should not have worried: it feels so normal and natural and happy to be seeing your old students again and meeting your new ones in the Welcome week. I very much look forward to getting to know my new first year tutees through their first year. And it was especially nice to reconnect with a few familiar faces, now in their third year, whom I have either as personal tutees or dissertation supervisees. We picked up as if our last chat was only yesterday; they knew I knew about things they had found hard at some point earlier in their time with us and they wanted to let me know how things have developed while I was away or share exciting thoughts about dissertations just starting. I particularly treasure these long-term relationships we build along the years and I am hoping I can stay in touch with these finalist tutees as with many others in past years!
I also look forward to sharing with all our students news of the student-staff collaborative storytelling project, Myth and Voice (go to https://mythandvoice.org) that I worked on during my leave last year. A call out for volunteers is coming out very soon so please watch this space!
That’s all for this week, Classicists! Don’t forget to send me contributions for next week’s instalment of our “Classics News” by next Thursday!
Have a great weekend,
Christos
