Hi! Here is my final video. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gUewv983ZT_EYV2LBqcddP7I1_R3rX_3/view?usp=sharing

Hi Dio, 

I'm so glad that you've established such a meaningful connection with your mentor! I relate to what you said about your mentor shaping not only the content but also your approach - I found that in my work as well, that it was often the subtle suggestions of contextualizing thoughts or methodological points that helped a lot. I love the idea of a mission statement to turn to at tedious moments - did you find that helpful/did your mission stay pretty consistent throughout? 

Hey Herbie, 

I love what you said in your reflection about how no historical action can ever be fully exhausted. I also relate to the fact that it's intimidating to follow and contribute to scholarship that has existed for so many decades prior to you, but I think it's important to keep in mind that the beauty of human interpretation is that each individual's perspective will and can add to an ongoing scholarly debate. I am confident in your ability to observe complexity and tension within sources and synthesize an argument that moves the existing conversation along. I also think it's great how you learned from your time last summer and are able to devote more time to questions that motivate thought rather than sources. 

Hey Dio! Yes, interdisciplinary work! It's so interesting to hear about your progression in research. I recall from last summer that your work then was also more historical/literary so it's exciting to branch into broader questions and themes. Something that your research is probably yielding is that while researching the human experience, and especially these themes of racism, homophobia, etc, you can use so many different tools and disciplines (like literature; psychology) to gain a fuller understanding of the picture. More layers of complexity and ways of coming at the problem will yield fascinating results. 

Week 5: 

I have gained so many skills and new knowledge from this experience. Firstly, I have gained a much broader conceptual understanding of my subject matter and Greek history in general - the relationship between philosophy, medicine, and patients. I have broadened my understanding of forces of conflict that come together in a society, both in the past and in our time as well, namely issues of biological imperatives meeting social imperatives, how to question what is seen as objective, and how intersectional any investigation of a human should be. More specifically, I have learned more about the technique of “reading against the grain” because I am looking at the Greek language and asking questions about terms (like “sexism”) that are not as clear in the literature, so one cannot be anachronistic but still needs to be clear in one’s strategy and use of terms. I have developed more appreciation for the overall process of research and learned to manage my daily/weekly perspective on what is “productive,” and part of that has been me learning how to work through lines of complexity and seek clarity rather than seek a teleological end goal. 

The person who has shaped my project the most is my mentor, who has been immensely helpful with her guidance during this complicated project. She has challenged me to think in a new discourse and push my thoughts beyond a two-dimensional line of argument. I have learned from her that leadership is often about the words that are dropped in a conversation that are perhaps not intended to be the main point: you can lead as much with what is said in the “parentheses” of dialogue as you can with the first or last sentence. I will take forward from this project a new inspiration to challenge binary arguments in existing scholarship and seek complexity and nuance in my work, particularly around issues of gender. 

Hi Jake! I also try to set a 9-5 type of schedule for myself and it seems nice that your supervisor lets you know of any tasks for the day so that you have a focused day. I'm also glad you get to attend some of her meetings because it's always great to listen/hear from others and have some variety in your day as well. So cool that you are working so closely with these important education initiatives in CO! 

Week 4: 

This is a great question because I think that so much of research consists of responding to difficulties that arise and working to adapt your initial image of the research process or reading materials. Some challenges that I have felt this summer are: working in my home and managing relationships with those in my house and my own research; finding the appropriate literature online, without access to a library; trying to find an argumentative angle on the topic I've chosen (i.e. what can I contribute to this ongoing conversation); managing the mental fatigue of intense research; and seeking clarity in my thoughts when I have a lot of reactions to literature.  I also think that the conditions this summer posed a unique challenge in my working/living environment and have allowed me to think more about the relationship between myself and my work, how I best think through ideas, and how to manage feeling overwhelmed. One specific challenge I encountered was not being able to access/find a particular text I needed that my mentor recommended (Plutarch's Advice about Living Well). I looked carefully on CLIO and on Google but still could not find it, so I finally reached out the the Classics librarian I was paired with last year. I am grateful that the Laidlaw program provided this connection and that the librarian was willing to help this summer as well.  

Yes, I would say that my research has introduced me to new fields of interest. Before this project I did not know anything about ancient medicine or reproductive rights in the ancient world. I have come to realize so much more how forces of natural philosophy, patriarchy, social imperatives, etc. intersect within medical literature. Medicine is a fascinating field through which to see social systems contingently implicated, particularly for an object like the female body (who is controlling her, how does her reproducing body interact with her healthy body, is there any possibility for agency). My work has narrowed greatly from the beginning of the project. For one, I began with a broad focus on women's bodies in Greek medicine in the classical period, but now am focusing more on Soranus' Gynecology (a specific text) which is a few centuries after the classical period of 4th/5th century BCE. Further, I initially was interested in broad concepts like "nature" "subjectivity" and how the female body is constructed by medicine with a particular social agenda. Now, I have a narrower focus on the female psyche in Soranus and the manner in which the mental interacts with the social. I am looking at psychic impact on the reproductive process and the terms with which female agency exists or is constrained in this text. 

Hi everyone! A typical day of research usually entails waking up and running (to beat the summer heat!) before starting my day of research at my computer. I take most of my notes on Word, and read articles/literature through CLIO, so the majority of my time is spent taking notes or writing through my argumentative thoughts or reactions to primary sources. I try and take breaks whenever I feel as though the computer screen is too much, but for most of the day I have been using Word to narrow down my thoughts. At the end of the day, I like to write down some research goals/tasks for the next day and specifically what is immediate priority. Here is a picture of my desk! https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qyZDKd9YslWF-QdTnBcG3SM6tJ94fLp5/view?usp=sharing