Two Southwestern students, Classics major Georgia LoSchiavo ’12 and  Greek major Trey Frye ’12, presented papers at the annual Sunoikisis Undergraduate Research Symposium in Washington, DC, April 27. Their abstracts were chosen through a competitive selection process.

The site of this national conference was the Center for Hellenic Studies (CHS). Students from other institutions around the country presented as well. Sunoikisis students attended also the symposium in which the Fellows of the CHS presented the results of their research during their fellowship period.

Trey’s paper “St. Justin and the Graeco-Roman World: An Analysis of Justin’s Presentation of Christianity as the Fulfillment of Graeco-Roman Tradition” addresses the philosophical position of St. Justin Martyr (Abstract; Paper [PDF]). Trey’s work ventured into a period to which sufficient scholarly attention has not been devoted, especially in the case of early Christian writers such as Justin. This work springs from Trey’s fall 2011 Senior Capstone project.

Georgia’s presentation “Antigone Re-Crystallized: Ancient Myth in Modern Times” focused on her “translation” of the Antigone myth (Abstract; Paper [PDF]; Presentation [PDF]). She has transformed this work from its original Greek text into a graphic novel, with original drawings, that connects with a contemporary audience. Georgia’s presentation included several drawings that she prepared as part of her Spring 2012 Capstone project.

Both students received Fleming Student Travel awards to help defray expenses.

“Sunoikisis” comes from Thucydides (3.3.1) in reference to the alliance formed by the cities of Lesbos (Methymna excluded) in their revolt against the Athenian empire in 428 B.C.E.  Likewise, this collaborative program seeks to develop a set of common goals and achieve a degree of success and prominence that goes beyond the capacity of a single program.

Southwestern University is one of the founding institutions of Sunoikisis. In addition to the Symposium, Sunoikisis sponsors collaborative courses, faculty development seminars, and excavation opportunities.

surs gallery

Please click here for an image gallery of the Symposium.