James Taylor
Visiting Assistant Professor of Classics
Couper Hall 106315-859-4617
jctaylor@hamilton.edu
James Taylor’s research and teaching interests span a wide variety of genres and time periods in classical antiquity, embracing texts as diverse as Aristotle’s Meteorologica and Ovid’s Metamorphoses. His present book project considers geological processes and deep time in classical literature, and draws upon interpretative frameworks from the history of science, environmental criticism, and the philosophy of history. In terms of wider interests, he has published on the role of philosophy in the intellectual and literary cultures of classical antiquity, and the cultural and metapoetic significance of landscapes in Latin literature. Before coming to Hamilton College, Taylor taught courses in ancient Greek, Latin, and the cultures of ancient Greece and Rome at Harvard University, where he earned his doctorate.
Recent Courses Taught
The Civilizations of Greece and the Near East
Elementary Latin
Research Interests
Latin epic, bucolic, and satire
Classical historiography and geography
Natural philosophy in classical antiquity
History of science, particularly geology
Environmental criticism and history
Distinctions
- GSAS Dissertation Completion Fellowship, Harvard University, 2019–20.
- Kittredge Fund Grant, 2018.
- Antiquarian Booksellers Association Bursary, London Rare Books School, 2018.
- Merit Fellowship, Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, 2017.
- Bok Center Certificates of Distinction in Teaching, Harvard University, 2015–18.
- Charles P. Segal Travel Awards, Harvard University, 2014, 2015 & 2016.
- CHESS (Cambridge Home and EU Scholarship Scheme) Scholarship, University of Cambridge, 2011–12.
- Classics Faculty Bursary, University of Cambridge, 2011–12.
Select Publications
- “Even Natura Nods: Lucan’s Alternative Explanations of the Syrtes,” in Mark Thorne and Laura Zientek (eds.) Lucan’s Imperial World: The Bellum Civile in its Contemporary Contexts, Bloomsbury, 91-109.
- Review of S. J. Heyworth, James Morwood, A Commentary on Vergil, Aeneid 3. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2017. Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2018.08.08.
- “Eloquence will not say a few words: the textual record of Republican oratory and the purpose of Cicero’s Brutus.” Rosetta 13: 122-34.
Professional Affiliations
Society for Classical Studies
Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment
Appointed to the Faculty: 2020
Educational Background
Ph.D., Harvard University
M.Phil., Hughes Hall, University of Cambridge
B.A., Corpus Christi College, University of Oxford