Elaine Fantham

Elaine Fantham (born Elaine Crosthwaite, 25 May 1933 – 11 July 2016) was a British-Canadian classicist. She studied and taught about ancient books written in Latin, especially funny stories, big poems, and speaking styles. She also learned a lot about the lives of women in ancient Rome.

Elaine wrote important books about famous old stories by writers like Seneca, Lucan, and Ovid. Her work helped people learn more about these stories and about how women lived long ago. She could speak many languages, like Italian, German, and French, and she gave talks all over the world.

She was a special teacher of Latin at Princeton University from 1986 to 1999. She even talked about old books on NPR's Weekend Edition.

Education

Elaine Fantham was born in Liverpool, United Kingdom. She studied at Somerville College, Oxford, where she earned a first class BA in 1954, which later became an MA in 1957. She also held a research position at the University of Liverpool from 1956 to 1958 and finished her PhD there in 1965. Her PhD thesis focused on a commentary of the Curculio by Plautus, and was examined by R. G. Austin and O. Skutsch.

Career

Elaine Fantham taught for seven years at a secondary school for girls in St Andrews, Scotland, and then briefly at the University of St Andrews. She later moved to Indiana University Bloomington, where she worked as a visiting lecturer from 1966 to 1968. After that, she taught at the University of Toronto for eighteen years, from 1968 to 1986. During this time, she also visited Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio in 1983.

In 1986, she joined Princeton University as the Giger Professor of Latin, a role she kept until she retired in 2000. She also led the Department of Classics there from 1989 to 1992. After retiring, Fantham lived in Toronto and kept teaching and mentoring students, both in Canada and around the world.

Classical associations and editorial committee roles

From 1976 to 1979, Elaine Fantham helped lead a journal called Phoenix, which was important for the Classical Association of Canada. She also held leadership roles in other groups, like the Canadian Society for the History of Rhetoric and the American Philological Association. Later, she served as an honorary president of the Classical Association of Canada.

Awards

Elaine Fantham received several honors for her work. On January 5, 2008, she was given the Distinguished Service Award by the American Philological Association. In 2012, she became an honorary fellow of Trinity College at the University of Toronto. In May 2015, she was awarded the Classical Association of Canada's Award of Merit.

Personal life

Elaine Fantham was married to a mathematician named Peter Fantham. Together, they had two children named Julia and Roy.

Works

Elaine Fantham wrote many books and articles about ancient Roman and Greek stories and history. Her work looked at poems, plays, and how people lived long ago, especially women. She also helped edit big books about ancient times and wrote explanations for older writings.