Processes of Identity of Migrants in Classical Athens

Migrations from Antiquity to the Present Days, 2020

After the Greco-Persian Wars Athens became a thriving economic and cultural center of the entire Greek World. A huge number of newcomers from other Greek poleis were inhabiting Athens, in search of better life opportunities. In 431 BC, when the Peloponnesian war broke out confronting the Greek city-states, it brought to light the deeply rooted discord and strife among the Athenian citizens. In critical political situations, which were quite numerous during the war, some Athenian citizens had to flee and seek refuge elsewhere. Some of them managed to come back, to regain their property, as well as the social status they had before the exile. Some others, on the other hand, decided to remain abroad permanently, living their lives there as foreigners. The authors of this article present Andocides (сca. 440-390) and Lysias (сca. 445-380), two notable figures of the Attic oratory, whose lives reveal authentic migrant stories, latter as the Athenian immigrant and former as the Athenian emigrant.

Essays for Christopher Pelling on Characterization in Greek and Roman Biography and Historiography, 2015

Rationes Rerum, 2019

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“Xenophon and Athens”, in M.A.Flower (ed.), Cambridge Companion to Xenophon (Cambridge 2017), 338-359.

Polemos and his Children: War, its Repercussions, and Narrative in Ancient Greek Literature, 2021

The siege of the Boeotian city-state of Plataiai during the Peloponnesian War at the end of the 5th Century BC precipitated the evacuation of an entire population to exile. The Plataeans found refuge in Athens, and it was the latter city’s lot, a polis with a strong tradition of rigid social structures and exclusivity of its own citizens, to accept and integrate the Plataean refugees. In regard to this topic, this paper focuses on three separate aspects: Firstly, it examines the legal status enjoyed by the Plataeans in their exile, particularly the status of citizenship granted them by their Athenian hosts, the details of which are as yet somewhat sketchy. What impact the grant of citizenship had on the everyday lives of the Plataeans, their degree of integration and marginalization, and whether this citizenship really was, in practice, on par with full Athenian citizenship remains unclear and needs to be examined. Secondly, the paper intends to draw conclusions on the construction and maintenance of a distinct Platean ethnic identity within Athenian society. Integrative measures as well as the very specific legal status enjoyed by the Plataeans appear to have contributed strongly to the nurturing of a distinct and possibly hybrid identity, thereby becoming, in the words of Herakleides Kritikos, “Athenian Boeotians”. Thirdly, the paper examines the portrayal of the Plataeans as victims of war and refugees in need of help in Athenian sources, as well as the instrumentalization of this very image by the Athenians for political reasons. Displacement and flight of entire communities of people is but one of the many seemingly timeless faces of war, and is a topic that has received only limited attention from scholars studying the ancient world. The portrayal of the Plataeans as war refugees in Athenian sources can give us a glimpse into the way various aspects of war were perceived, abstracted and judged in ancient Athenian society, thereby allowing us to add a further dimension to the ancient portrayal of war

(Grade - B+ / 78%) (4/3/2018) A difficult problem presents itself in Xenophon's Anabasis. Utterly, and seemingly, hopelessly surrounded, the 'Ten Thousand' depend on unity for survival. Yet, here end the commonalities between these men. Numerous episodes reveal that, absent any imminent threat, the Hellenes have little in common. Indeed, in moments of relative safety disagreement is widespread, and grievances are aired. The soldiers, " unchecked by fear, become much more lawless " 1. In other words, the Anabasis oscillates between the two sorts of danger: mortal and political. The focus of Xenophon's leadership oscillates in kind, between individual and communal obligations, that is, the preservation of one's life, and the negotiation of one common life, respectively. In the latter case, he proffers a common Hellenism as the basis for cohesion, and runs into difficulty. This analysis focuses on the role of ethnic identities and whether it proves useful in the Ten Thousand's wanderings.

Pallas, 2020

This paper was delivered to the annual meeting of the American Philological Association held at San Francisco, CA in 2004.

Pallas. Revue d'Etudes Antiques, 2020