<p>This thesis argues that the Epicureans did not simply repeat the ipsa dicta of Epicurus, but developed new areas of study - (e.g., logic, rhetoric) of which Epicurus did not approve. This transmuted Epicureanism influenced the Romans of the late Republic and some of its ideas appear in Lucretius' De Rerum Natura.</p> <p>Chapter 1 offers a brief historical sketch of some Epicureans of the late Republic and suggests that there was a peculiarly Roman Epicureanism as evidenced by their lives and actions. Chapter 2 discusses changes in Epicurean attitudes due to the influence of other schools, and the desire to "popularize" Epicureanism among the Romans. Chapter 3 outlines the evidence for the existence of Epicurean works in Latin other than the De Rerum Natura. Chapter 4 deals with Lucretius' debt to the early Epicureans, the later Epicureans and his Roman milieu.</p> / Master of Arts (MA)

A dramatic analysis and directorial reflection on Temple Theaters' production of Charles L. Mee's BIG LOVE, a modern rendering of Aeschylus' THE SUPPLIANT WOMEN. This thesis explores the entire process of directing the production, from research and text analysis, to visual collaboration and rendering, to casting and rehearsal, to tech and production. Ultimately, it is the author's intention to reveal a specific directorial perspective of BIG LOVE and the corresponding creative process utilized to render this interpretation. / Theater

Prehistoric Town Planning in Crete" was published in 1950 by Richard Hutchinson. He determined there was no evidence of town planning on Minoan Crete except for two instances. Hutchinson's approach compared the layout of the few excavated Minoan towns to other contemporary sites, such as Kahun, Egypt and Harrappa, India. These towns were laid out in grid-like squares, on flat, level ground. Compared to these sites the settlements on Crete appeared as an amalgamation of disorganized, organic growth. More than half a century has elapsed between Hutchinson's article and this study. Within that time many more Minoan sites and towns have been excavated and published. This greater corpus offers an opportunity to examine Minoan town planning with a new eye. This greater number of excavated Minoan towns allows for a study of town planning by comparing Minoan communities to one another. When an investigation is done comparing sites within Crete only, a pattern starts to emerge. To accomplish this analysis nine elements of Minoan town planning are defined, examined at individual sites, and compared among settlements. These nine elements are: 1. A street system adhering to the natural contours of the land 2. Buildings arranged in irregular, attached blocks defined by the street system 3. A large plateia or centrally located community court easily accessible from all parts of the town 4. Other open public spaces throughout the settlement 5. An elite building near the plateia 6. Public buildings in which there is no habitation 7. Semi-public buildings 8. Built fortifications 9. Extramural dependencies, which are structural features or natural areas outside the borders of the town proper but are an integral part of the community This comparison elucidates a very specific and existing type of Minoan town planning. It began at least as early as Early Minoan II and reached its apogee in Late Minoan I. What at first glance looks random, is not. Minoan towns were laid out within the constraints of the local landscape and with the desired aesthetic. The result was a lifestyle in LM I far beyond subsistence living. / Art History

Tripods constituted a specific group of pottery within the Bronze Age Aegean tradition. The shape was typically associated with ritual and cooking activities. This study presents an examination of Minoan tripod cooking pots from Crete. By tracing the morphological changes that occur from one period to the next, this research seeks to discuss the relationship between the form and function of these vessels. It is hoped that the following analysis may also shed light on the origin and practicality of tripod cooking pots. / Art History

Sources from the late antique and Byzantine eras attest that some Christian spouses adopted marital celibacy, or married persons' abstention from sexual intimacy, as an ascetic practice. The prevalent scholarship on marital celibacy has all too often read later practices of marital celibacy into earlier texts, due to scholars' tendency to universalize ascetic practice. This study endeavors to dismantle such universalizing by demonstrating the differences among four church fathers' approaches and attitudes toward marital celibacy, assuming neither the popularity of the practice nor the immediate affirmation of its necessity for marital ascetic piety. The dissertation explores the theme of marital celibacy in the works of four of the most influential men of the late fourth and early fifth centuries --Gregory of Nazianzus, Gregory of Nyssa, Basil of Caesarea, and Augustine of Hippo-- through a careful analysis of various sources, from funeral orations to hagiographies, to sermons to dogmatic treatises, to letters and to monastic rules. It questions whether the practice was widely embraced in both the eastern and western regions of the empire and distinguishes between theoretical and pragmatic acceptance of marital celibacy. Not only does the study place the men's beliefs regarding marital celibacy within their larger teachings on marriage and virginity, but it also emphasizes the way in which each man's social context and pastoral role contributed to his rhetoric on the topic. It considers the ways in which the rhetoric surrounding marital celibacy intersected with the men's agendas and perspectives concerning other matters, such as their promotion of their saintly family (Gregory of Nazianzus and Gregory of Nyssa), their monastic program (Basil), and their apologetics (Augustine). The project highlights the nuances among each father as well as the divergences between the east (represented by the Cappadocians) and west (represented by Augustine). Although each man discusses the topic of marital celibacy in some way and endorses its practice, at least ideally, they also indicate that not everyone was embracing marital celibacy, nor was every ecclesial leader promoting its practice as necessary for marital piety. Their writings reveal that at least a few people had adopted marital celibacy, and that many people--bishops and laity alike--were attempting to understand its theoretic and pragmatic place and role in the Christian life, particularly in light of Paul's instructions in 1 Corinthians 7. Despite efforts to offer a conclusive analysis of marital celibacy in the works of these four church fathers, the limitations caused by the divergences in the fathers' rhetoric, due to the distinctive contexts and genres of their writings, hinders a straightforward conclusion. Thus this dissertation serves as a glimpse into the diversity of early Christian marital practices through the lens of marital celibacy, underscoring the complexity of both belief and behavior in the late antique Christian world. / Religion

This dissertation examines monkey and ape iconography in Minoan art during the Aegean Bronze Age (ca. 3,000–1,100 B.C.). Although a broad range of animals exist for depiction, Minoan artists carefully selected each subject in order to fulfill specific roles. Monkeys and apes appear to function differently than the other creatures that are depicted in art. Rather than subscribing to the general roles played by other animals, these primates may be shown outdoors, behaving like wild animals, or in a ceremonial context, participating in a ritual. Monkeys also imitate human activities. The deviation of primates from the typical roles of other animals found in Minoan art invites a deeper investigation of the role and iconography of apes and monkeys. In this study, three types of media that bear depictions of primates are considered. These media include figurines, glyptic art, and wall paintings. First, a review of the stylistic features of Minoan art and the possibility for the use of pattern books is discussed. Next, monkey and ape iconography in Egyptian art is explored. A thorough review of the creatures’ iconography in Minoan art follows, which includes the identification of figures as either ape or monkey, as well as a detailed description and conclusions about each type of representation. A new possible reconstruction of the Saffron Gatherer fresco is also included. Finally, the possible origins of Minoan primate iconography are considered, as well as the possible implications of the creature’s history, development, and roles. With this information in mind, the Offering to the Seated Goddess scene is then examined. The possible reconstruction of a crocus ceremony is proposed and explained, and the Levantine parallels for the compositional arrangement of the scene are also addressed. These conclusions may directly inform greater themes in Minoan culture, such as religion and cult practices. / Art History

Five seals come from a Minoan site on the island of Chryssi, just off the southeastern coast of Crete. Four of these seals are sealstones, and one is the bezel of a metal seal ring. These seals are important as individual objects to allow for a deeper understanding of the people that inhabited Chryssi Island during the Bronze Age, but a further understanding of the site itself is also garnered by expanding the focus to include all of the seals of Crete. By doing so, this study allows for the discussion of regional interactions among the people of Chryssi and various other Minoan sites throughout Crete. The various approaches to seals come together to suggest the same conclusions, most notably that at least some of the people on Chryssi enjoyed a life of limited luxury through the control of various industries on the island, particularly the production of murex purple dye. / Art History

The ancient Roman domestic cult is often overlooked and marginalized in favor of state sponsored practices, monuments, and temples; yet it can give us insights into daily life, cultural interactions, and personal identity in the Empire. In my dissertation, I recreate a selection of domestic contexts in order to learn more about private cultic practices, thus illuminating those activities and behaviors that may be far removed from what appears in the literary sources or in monumental reliefs and paintings. Furthermore, the era considered is a crucial period in the history of the western world that included the rise of Christianity and dramatic changes in Roman pagan cults. By concentrating on the Roman East, I produce information relating to these changes outside of Italy and study the impact on cross-cultural exchanges and identities formulated by the Roman colonization of these cities. The Roman domestic cult in Italy invoked specific gods to maintain the well-being of the home in small shrines within the house. Material evidence for these practices survives in the form of statuettes and wall paintings of the gods, incense burners, and altars. Other divinities chosen by the head of the household could join or supplant the traditional domestic deities. These additions to private shrines acted as protective patron gods of the household and they reveal a personal relationship between deity and devotee. One barrier to the understanding of the domestic cult in its original context is the nature of multiculturalism in the Roman Empire. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, scholars tended to equate the Roman Empire with the concept of the modern nation-state. The Empire was seen as a cultural juggernaut that disseminated a uniform Roman identity that was sent out from Italy to the provinces. Evidence for "Romanization" was noted in the introduction of the Roman city plan, and Roman habits were seen in new types of public buildings such as baths or amphitheaters, the adoption of Roman coinage, the toga and the Latin language, and the introduction of Roman cults, especially the cult of the emperor. Most scholars today prefer to view the expansion of the Empire as a process that included reciprocal acculturation between natives and their Roman masters. Using this model, I examine religious cross-currents on a domestic scale, thus contributing to the current scholarly discussion. By exploring the cult in the home, we can get a better indication of the interaction between native and Roman in the private sphere. Scholars agree that we can learn more from smaller, regional studies; it cannot be assumed that the same things occurred in all parts of the empire and at all times. The case-study approach has replaced the sweeping and sometimes vague histories of years past. I have chosen three sites from the Roman East since they have an abundance of material evidence that has not been exploited to its full potential: Karanis (modern Egypt), Ephesos (modern Turkey), and Dura-Europos (modern Syria). The significance of my project is three-fold. I present previously unpublished material from important sites in the Roman East. By looking at these three sites, I expand the dialogue from the singular discussion of domestic religion in first-century Italy, thus enriching it substantially. Through the consideration of acculturation between east and west I contribute to the discussion of "Romanization" in the first to fifth centuries CE. By comparing these sites with those better published, such as Pompeii and Ostia (Rome's port, largely abandoned in the second half of the third into the fourth centuries), I can more clearly show the contrast between the two halves of the Empire. My goals will be to determine how (and if) "Romanization" can be seen in these locations, what the impact of local artistic styles and indigenous deities is, and how the reciprocal relationship manifests in daily religious practices within the home. / Art History

Petronius' Satyrica is uniquely situated as the Roman literary work most concerned with performance, theatricality, and the disconnect between perception and reality. Throughout the Satyrica, Petronius conjures the specter of the first princeps, Augustus. Augustan resonances are a constant occurrence in the Satyrica as Petronius' characters continuously reenact Augustan moments significant to the foundation of the principate. Such reenactments destabilize and alter any meaning essential to Augustan foundational moments leading to their subversion and thus a subversion of the principate in general. Thus, by emphasizing performances of ideological, moral, and social contradictions inherent in the princeps, Petronius presents a critique of the figure that created that role and the continuation of his legacy: that the position of princeps is a farce, that Nero was a byproduct of Augustus' creation, and that the principate had been theater from the very beginning.

Alexander the Great represents the pinnacle of mortal achievement. There are many histories, novels, and even self-help books written on Alexander, though very few discuss in detail exactly who this enigmatic youth was. Tragically, many historians deny the possibility of understanding the intricacies of Alexander's complex personality. This thesis espouses that Alexander can be studied as a human-being brimming over with wisdom and accomplishment. The research conducted for this thesis has involved combing the ancient authors whom Alexander read and was influenced by in order to fully represent Alexander as a deeply emulative hero. The portrait of Alexander that readers will find below is both deeply historical and fascinatingly mythical, for he lived in both worlds. Alexander believed in a prophecy uttered by Prometheus which foretold of a weapon that would "best the thunderbolt" of Zeus; the fulfillment of this prophecy would bring the glory of Alexander's heroic bloodline to a dramatic and powerful conclusion. To reach this goal, Alexander had to rival his ancestors Achilles and Hercules in accomplishment and then excel them in memory. It is the hope that this thesis will paint an original portrait of Alexander which is overflowing with the spirituality, passion, and adventure that characterized the young king.