Launching A Reception Collection
Ancient Stories, Modern World
Welcome to A Reception Collection, where I explore how modern culture engages with the ancient Mediterranean past. I’ll be sharing my thoughts on books, games, art installations, and more; if it’s a contemporary piece of culture that has some kind of ancient Mediterranean theme, I’ll probably write about it!
Click here for my about page, where I talk in more detail about why I’m taking on this project.
1. Why A Reception Collection?
The long answer: I’m a lifelong history buff, especially for ancient Greece. Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve been fascinated by historical civilizations, their cultures, and their mythologies. Even though I didn’t know what historical reception was when I was a kid, I participated in it all the time. I used to make endless drawings of Greek goddesses and Celtic warriors, often copying them from my favorite book illustrations. I’d devour every mythology book I could find, and compare and contrast the way they told their stories.
Years later, I’m a graduate student with a history degree and a certificate of Hellenic studies under my belt. I still love history and mythology, of course, but I’ve become increasingly interested not just in ancient stories, but how modern people interact with them. For a while now, I’ve wanted to create some sort of platform where I can dissect different corners of mythologically tinged modern culture, which brings us to A Reception Collection’s launch.
The short answer: my graduate thesis is all about how modern global culture interacts with the ancient Mediterranean. I’d love to share my research with academics and laypeople alike, as well as write about interesting pieces of culture that are beyond the scope of my thesis text.
What to Expect from A Reception Collection
-Bite-sized posts about different kinds of ancient Mediterranean-tinged pop culture, delivered straight to your inbox
-The occasional longer post
-Book, movie, game, etc. recommendations
-Sneak peeks into my thesis research
I’m aiming to deliver a few posts per month, but this is subject to change. Grad school is a fickle and unpredictable beast.