Barnaby Taylor
@miserabiliter
Associate Professor of Classics at the University of Oxford. hæc comice dicta cave ne male capias.
The first temple of Apollo at Delphi was made of branches of laurel; the second of beeswax and feathers; the third of bronze, and was destroyed by the gods when the sweetness of the singing made people forget who they are
AT THE ATHENS AIRPORT Border Agent: What is your occupation? Me: I’m a philosopher BA (looking suspicious): Ok, then who’s the greatest Greek philosopher? Me (instantly): Aristotle BA (stamping my passport): Of course. Proceed
At an absolutely fantastic conference, keeping out of the heat
Wretched, subhuman take. In five pages of Plato your entire life can be upended, your soul turned toward the Good that lies beyond your grasp but always draws you onward. In five pages of Marx you can become conscious of the movement of history. Read real fucking books.
Spending an hour asking ChatGPT about Adam Smith generally teaches you 3x as much as spending an hour reading Wealth of Nations. The undergrads are using AI because it's just a better, more efficient way to learn things
“The arc of history is long, and it bends toward” *flips through history book* Oh. Oh no. Oh no no no
Trying to get hold a copy of every Latin text by Petrarch. Fun project, still a long way to go.
This October, I will be starting as a postdoctoral Junior Research Fellow in Classics at New College, Oxford. I will be there for three years, working on language in Roman Jerusalem. I am extremely grateful and excited!
We all know Μῆνιν, arma, Aeneadum, Cynthia etc but what’s the most unremarkable opening word of a Latin or Greek poetic work? ‘Hoc’ at Propertius 4.1 might stake a claim.
Oxford open days tomorrow and Thursday. I’ll be at Exeter College, Staircase 5, Room 2, to speak to any prospective applicants about applying for the best university degree ever devised, at the finest college in Oxford
I’ve just finished a big piece of work and need something serious to read for a few days to prevent me falling into the usual despair. Any recs?
So, next year, I’ll be a Research Fellow at @DumbartonOaks, working on 11th c. schedography. Many thanks to Dumbarton Oaks for granting me this opportunity, as well as to my Faculty, @ExeterCollegeOx, and @BritishAcademy_ for their continued support. exeter.ox.ac.uk/exeter-fellow-…
Beautiful gift from a departing student, with whom I’ve never discussed Gurney, but who knew enough about me to guess my esteem for him. Counting myself lucky as always to be in this job
Inventing the bag for life has to be the world’s worst Walter Mitty claim
Latest arrival, from the incomparable Pico and the beautiful I Tatti. The 23-year-old's 900 Conclusions, augmented by 946 notes 😍😅
Schools Dinner at Exeter, bidding farewell to Classics undergrads after four great years with them
Dinner with departing students in what might be my favourite place on earth
The "enjoyment" of literature has been holding the field back for decades. The sooner we eradicate this, the sooner we can achieve true sociological insights