11th Annual Graduate Colloquium in Classics

Hospitality and ? ? ?

Saturday, March 30, 2013
Mershon Center
1501 Neil Avenue
Columbus, Ohio

Keynote Speaker: Daniel Caner, University of Connecticut
Opening Address: Tom Hawkins, The Ohio State University
Location: Mershon Center at The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio

Image of Jupiter and Mercurius in the House of Philemmon and Baucisby Rubens
Jupiter and Mercurius in the House of Philemon and Baucisby Rubens

From Odysseus’ famous encounter with Polyphemos to Martial’s Xenia (book XIII), guests and hosts appear frequently in the ancient world. More recently, scholars have explored the role hospitality may play in less obvious ways, such as the potential for hospitality presented by itinerant sophists (Tell, 2011). The concept of hospitality deserves serious attention, in part because it offers an entry point—an invitation—to exploring other concepts such as reading practices, monastic orders, gift-giving, and citizenship. We invite you to add to the scholarly discussion of hospitality in the ancient world by relating it to other times, concepts, texts, and contexts.

Schedule of Events

9:00-9:30                                             Coffee and Bagels

9:30-10:15                                           Opening Address
                                                            “Let the Right One In”
                                                            Tom Hawkins, The Ohio State University

10:15-10:45                                         "Blood for Speech: Aspects of Exchange in Odyssey 11"
                                                             Dwayne Meisner, University of Western Ontario

10:45-11:00                                         Coffee Break

11:00-11:30                                         "Thinking Theoxenia"
                                                            Rachel Sotos, Fordham University

11:30-12:00                                         "Piracy: Cause of Hospitality"
                                                           Aaron L. Beek, University of Minnesota

12:00-1:30                                           Lunch

1:30-2:00                                            "Exported Sons: Hospitality and Adoption in the Roman and
                                                           Sasanian Empires"     
                                                           Jacqueline Arthur-Montagne, Stanford University

2:00-2:30                                            "On the Road with the Byzantines:  Inns and Travelers in the
                                                           Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth Centuries"
                                                           Jason Fossella, Saint Louis University

2:30-3:00                                           Coffee Break

3:00-4:00                                            Keynote Address
                                                          
"No Respector of Persons: Monastic Hospitality and Notions
                                                           of Equality in Early Byzantium"
                                                           Daniel Caner, University of Connecticut