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Dr Joanna Paul

Profile summary

  • Central Academic Staff
  • Senior Lecturer in Classical Studies
  • Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences
  • School of Arts & Humanities
  • Classical Studies
  • joanna.paul

Web links

Professional biography

I am a Senior Lecturer in Classical Studies, and I joined the Open University in September 2011. Since 2019 I have also been the Open Media Fellow for Arts and Humanities. After an undergraduate degree in Greek and Roman Studies at the University of Birmingham, I studied for my MA and PhD at the University of Bristol, where I developed my research interests in classical reception studies. I joined the OU from the University of Liverpool, where I was a Lecturer in Classical Studies (2006-2009), and then the J.P. Postgate Early Career Fellow in Classics (2009-2011).Ìý

Research interests

My research is concerned with the many different ways in which the modern world receives, engages with, and uses the classical past. I am particularly interested in receptions of antiquity in contemporary popular culture, especially the cinema. My monograph on  was published by Oxford University Press in 2013, and I have written about films as diverse as Fellini-Satyricon,ÌýLe Mépris,ÌýAlexander, Agora, and Pompeii.Ìý

The ongoing impact of Pompeii and Herculaneum on the cultural imagination continues to be the other main focus of my work, and I am currently investigating the surprising variety of ways in which contemporary music, from prog rock to pop, has found inspiration in this archaeological site.Ìý

I am also developing a new project which explores the relationship between antiquity and gardens in the modern world. Building on my expertise in Latin literature, I am particularly interested in the ways in which Latin texts and other aspects of Greco-Roman myth and culture are incorporated into contemporary garden art, beginning with the work of Ian Hamilton Finlay at Little Sparta.

I supervise PhD students working on a range of classical reception topics, and have recently served as external examiner for projects in Liverpool, Queensland, and Madrid.Ìý

Teaching interests

I am experienced in teaching a wide variety of subjects, including classical reception topics, Latin literature, visual culture, and Roman history. I chaired our Latin module (Classical Latin: the Language of Ancient Rome (A276)) throughout its production and the first years of its presentation, and have contributed materials to all of our other Classical Studies modules. I am currently the Classical Studies lead for our level 1 interdisciplinary module, Cultures (A112), and am convening a block on Ovid and myth in Rome for our new level 3 myth module (A350).Ìý

I am committed to supporting high-quality and innovative teaching across my subject community, and have recently completed a term as Chair of the Education Committee at the Council of University Classical Departments (2018-2021). I am a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.Ìý

Impact and engagement

My role as Open Media Fellow for Arts and Humanities means I spend much of my time working with colleagues across the faculty, OpenLearn, and Broadcast & Partnerships on a wide variety of broadcast projects for the BBC, and open access resources. These activities play a vital role in bringing the OU’s expertise to the widest possible audience, while also generating materials that support our own teaching and learning.Ìý

Outside this role, I have contributed to DVD documentaries on AlexanderÌý²¹²Ô»åÌý and appeared on the BBC flagship Newsnight, as well as writing articles for Ìý²¹²Ô»åÌý. During my time as co-convener of the  (2017-19), I lead the redevelopment of our web presence, amongst other activities. I regularly present my research at conferences and seminars both nationally and internationally, and have in recent years been invited to give lectures at Aarhus, Paris, and Freiburg.Ìý

Publications

(2024-12-31)
Hobden, Fiona and Paul, Joanna
New Voices in Classical Reception Studies(14) (pp. 1-6)

(2019-07)
Paul, Joanna
Classical Receptions Journal, 11(3) (pp. 274-295)

(2010)
Paul, Joanna
Classical Receptions Journal, 2(1) (pp. 136-155)

(2013-02-28)
Paul, Joanna
Classical Presences
ISBN : 9780199542925 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford

(2021-11)
Paul, Joanna
In: Potter, Amanda and Gardner, Hunter eds. Ancient Epic in Film and Television (pp. 233-239)
ISBN : 9781474473743 | Publisher : Edinburgh University Press | Published : Edinburgh

(2021-09-03)
Paul, Joanna
In: Geue, Tom and Giusti, Elena eds. Unspoken Rome: Absence in Latin Literature and its Reception (pp. 250-269)
ISBN : 9781108913843 | Publisher : Cambridge University Press | Published : Cambridge

(2019-12)
Paul, Joanna
In: Witcher, Robert and van Helden, Daniël P. eds. Researching the Archaeological Past through Imagined Narratives: A Necessary Fiction. Routledge Studies in Archaeology (pp. 255-262)
ISBN : 9781138303638 | Publisher : Routledge

(2017)
Paul, Joanna
In: Zajko, Vanda and Hoyle, Helena eds. A Handbook to the Reception of Classical Mythology (pp. 231-242)
ISBN : 978-1-4443-3960-4 | Publisher : Wiley-Blackwell

(2015-09-07)
Paul, Joanna
In: Maurice, Lisa ed. The Reception of Ancient Greece and Rome in Children’s Literature: Eagles and Heroes. Metaforms (6) (pp. 30-55)
ISBN : 9789004298590 | Publisher : Brill | Published : Leiden

(2013-11-28)
Paul, Joanna
In: Nikoloutsos, Konstantinos P. ed. Ancient Greek Women in Film (pp. 139-162)
ISBN : 9780199678921 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford

(2013-10-31)
Paul, Joanna
In: Hardwick, Lorna and Harrison, Stephen eds. Classics in the Modern World: A 'Democratic Turn'? (pp. 143-156)
ISBN : 978-0-19-967392-6 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford

(2013-01)
Paul, Joanna
In: Cyrino, Monica ed. Screening Sex and Love in the Ancient World (p 227)
ISBN : 9781137299598 | Publisher : Palgrave Macmillan

(2011-11-17)
Paul, Joanna
In: Hales, Shelley and Paul, Joanna eds. Pompeii in the Public Imagination from its Rediscovery to Today. Classical Presences
ISBN : 978-0-19-956936-6 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford

(2009-01)
Paul, Joanna
In: Lowe, Dunstan and Shahabudin, Kim eds. Classics for All: Reworking Antiquity in Mass Culture (pp. 91-108)
ISBN : 9781443801201 | Publisher : Cambridge Scholars Publishing | Published : Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK

(2009)
Paul, Joanna
In: Cartledge, Paul and Greenland, Fiona Rose eds. Responses to Oliver Stone’s Alexander: Film, History and Culture Studies (pp. 15-35)
ISBN : 9780299232849 | Publisher : University of Wisconsin Press | Published : Madison, Wisconsin, USA

(2009)
Paul, Joanna
In: Prag, Jonathan R. W. and Repath, Ian D. eds. Petronius: A Handbook (pp. 198-217)
ISBN : 9781405156875 | Publisher : Wiley - Blackwell | Published : Oxford, UK

(2008-09-01)
Paul, Joanna
In: Wrigley, Richard ed. Cinematic Rome (pp. 109-120)
ISBN : 9781906510282 | Publisher : Troubadour Publishing Ltd | Published : Leicester, UK

(2008-08-21)
Paul, Jo
In: Lianeri, Alekandra and Zajko, Vanda eds. Translation & The Classic: Identity as Change in the History of Culture. Classical Presences (pp. 148-165)
ISBN : 9780199288076 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford, UK

(2007-12)
Paul, Joanna
In: Hardwick, Lorna and Stray, Christopher eds. A Companion to Classical Receptions (pp. 303-314)
ISBN : 9781405151672 | Publisher : Wiley - Blackwell | Published : Oxford, UK

(2011-11)
Hales, Shelley and Paul, Joanna eds.
Classical Presences
ISBN : 978-0-19-956936-6 | Publisher : Oxford University Press | Published : Oxford