Tag Archives: Language and Thought

More Than Meets the Eye: Fragrance, Sensuousness, and Inscribed Latin Poetry

Posted on June 24, 2015 by Peter Kruschwitz

When we talk about ‘reading’ and ‘Latin poetry’ in academic contexts, we often tend to reduce complex intellectual and sensuous processes to a fairly linear model by which a text, either by acoustic or by optic means, somehow enters the … Continue reading →

Posted in Carmina Epigraphica, Epigraphy, Poetry | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Departure, Abandonment, and Grief: Latin Poems about Death in Childbirth

Posted on June 12, 2015 by Peter Kruschwitz

A couple of months ago, I wrote about the poem for a Roman lap-dog named Margarita (‘Pearl’), whose splendid inscription I managed to visit in the British museum. The text of the inscription – moving, personal, and affectionate – has … Continue reading →

Posted in Carmina Epigraphica, Epigraphy, Poetry | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Poverty and the Poetics of Underclass Morality

Posted on June 9, 2015 by Peter Kruschwitz

Is there a direct (inversely proportional) relation between (desired) material wealth and morality? The author of the first pseudo-Sallustian letter to Caesar appears to think so ([Sall.] epist. 1.7.3-9; transl. J. C. Rolfe): But by far the greatest blessing which … Continue reading →

Posted in Carmina Epigraphica, Epigraphy, Poetry | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Oh the Humanity!

Posted on May 27, 2015 by Peter Kruschwitz

Several months ago, I received a letter from the Vatican which had been sent by His Eminence Pietro Parolin, Cardinal Secretary of State. The letter included my appointment to the position of Academicus Ordinarius of the Pontifical Academy for Latin … Continue reading →

Posted in Carmina Epigraphica, Epigraphy, Poetry | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Meet the gloomiest Romans of all time

Posted on January 29, 2015 by Peter Kruschwitz

Last week, I introduced a (very small) choice of inscriptions that presented a variety of ways in which heartbroken parents had begun to come to terms with the loss of their offspring. An inscription that I chose not to include … Continue reading →

Posted in Carmina Epigraphica, Epigraphy, Poetry | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Meet the gloomiest Romans of all time

Killing Jokes and Suicide Jests

Posted on January 8, 2015 by Peter Kruschwitz

There are two essential rules for anyone who wants to crack a joke: timing, timing, timing – and be mindful of your audience. Aelius Lamia, who had his first wife, Domitia Longina, pinched by Domitian, had to learn that lesson … Continue reading →

Posted in Poetry, Prose | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Killing Jokes and Suicide Jests

Happy New Year, Roman Style: Time to Get Baking!

Posted on December 26, 2014 by Peter Kruschwitz

I am working, rather dilatorily, on a substantial paper on ‘fringe epigraphy’– inscriptions at the margins of what epigraphists tend to be interested in. This paper matters a great deal to me, for I believe that the Romans inhabited a … Continue reading →

Posted in Epigraphy | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Happy New Year, Roman Style: Time to Get Baking!

Gay Weather

Posted on January 23, 2014 by Peter Kruschwitz

Weather prediction appears to be a difficult and complex task that, in order to arrive at reliable results, should not be left to a single amateur. Or so I thought… (After all, there had to be a good reason as … Continue reading →

Posted in Prose | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

‘Experiencing’ university: A Polemic

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Peter Kruschwitz

Originally published on the University of Reading’s Engage in Teaching and Learning blog: Avant-Propos The University of Reading, like any other Higher Education Institution, is a diverse place, with many stakeholders, but – at least in theory – one mutual … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Epigraphy, History of Reading | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on ‘Experiencing’ university: A Polemic