Feminism & Classics VI

The sixth in the series of "Feminism and Classics" conferences took place on May 24 to 27 in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, with Brock University hosting. The theme was "Crossing Borders, Crossing Lines," and contributors seemed to have taken "borders" and "lines" in terms of psychosexual identity, since there were not just papers but whole sessions on the intersection of gender, sexuality, and the body. In fact, I would say that transgender experience and the phenomenon of the transgressive body (hermaphrodites, eunuchs) were two dominant themes. In contrast to F&C V, there were fewer "literary" presentations; texts were not as popular this time around. There was also less unadulterated theory. Cultural studies was the methodology of choice. Kathy Gaca gave the keynote address "Ancient Warfare and the Forcible Penetration of Borders, Communities, and Boundaries." This was part of her ongoing project defining mass rape and enslavement of non-combatants as a recognized strategy of ancient warfare ("andrapodization"). She painted it as genocide, as indeed it is: her fundamental point is that it aimed at destroying cultural heritage and wiping out the group identity of a vanquished people. While the presentation was brilliant, its impact was disturbing. Throughout there was a striking lack of energy in the room; the audience listened in complete stillness and at the end simply filed out quietly. After we had time to think about her arguments, though, and distance ourselves from the emotive content, we realized what a courageous project she is undertaking. When the book comes out it will be one of the most significant studies in the field and may attract the attention of the scholarly world at large. Mary-Kay Gamel's production of Alcestis continued the tradition of dramatic readings at F&C VI. This was one of her most memorable efforts, partly because it was so well acted and partly because of the changed ending. Her Alcestis was no longer silent at the end; instead she made up her own mind (with a little audience help) and walked out on both Admetus and Death, taking the rest of the cast with her. Admetus and Pheres were left alone to reconcile. This was, I pointed out in the post-production discussion, the one false note, as the mutual fury they expressed in the agon seemed to preclude any kind of future concord. I moderated a session on "Architecture and Gender" which was pretty eclectic--five papers on topics as varied as the meaning of the program of Danaid sculptures in the portico of Apollo's temple on the Palatine and public building contributions to their native cities by female donors. Discussion was excellent, with many good comments from junior scholars and graduate students. Finally, my own presentation occurred as part of a retrospective panel on previous conferences in the series, going back to the very first meeting in Cincinnati in 1992. Many changes have happened within the field, and one of the big questions raised during the wrap-up session, urgently voiced by Barbara McManus, is whether the category of "feminism" has lost the meaning it had then, and consequently whether the kinds of papers presented now are feminist in the classic sense. That in turn should provoke some discussion at Feminism & Classics VII--scheduled for 2016, probably at an institution in the southeast part of the United States. It was the height of spring on the Brock campus, with weather already a bit hot (for Canada, I should say) and temperatures in the 80s. The campus contained many idyllic spots, particularly the Pond Inlet outside the auditorium where Alcestis was presented.

Inviting walking and jogging opportunities. I went out to dinner at local restaurants with a number of good friends, including Bonnie MacLaughlin and Ann Suter. The banquet, held at a local winery, was not as successful as some others--facilities were rather noisy and the staff seemed overwhelmed. As always, though, I got to chat with several people I hadn't seen for some time. I came home feeling that CAMWS and APA are pretty much professional meetings and, as such, can be tiring and occasionally depressing, but F&C is always like a class reunion.