UNH Today

Paul Robertson, a lecturer in the Department of Classics, Humanities and Italian Studies, has been awarded a Research Scholarship from the Hardt Foundation for the Study of Classical Antiquity in Geneva, Switzerland. This competitive award for junior scholars funds research at the Foundation for a 2- to 4-week period. Robertson will attend for 3 weeks in summer 2018, working on his book project tentatively titled "The Cyclops and the Self," which traces the Cyclops myth from ancient Greece to the present day in order to understand changing notions of selfhood.

“This award will allow me to spend a significant span of uninterrupted time with my research, which is essential for major projects,” says Robertson. “The Hardt Foundation has an excellent library of specialized ancient and modern sources as well as a beautiful environment to think, read, write and study. Furthermore, the Foundation brings together classical scholars from across the world, who will provide valuable critiques, suggestions and perspectives to my work.”

Robertson is a specialist in ancient Mediterranean religion and philosophy, the history of western thought and the theory of religion that looks to answer what religion is and why it exists. He particularly focuses on the origins of big ideas in western thought, tracing the diverse and formative influences on our current understandings of morality, justice, virtue, health and spirituality. He is the author of “Paul’s Letters and Contemporary Greco-Roman Literature: Theorizing a New Taxonomy” (Brill Publishers, 2016).