Dr Elena Claudi
About
I have recently completed my PhD at the University of Warwick with a thesis entitled "Constructing identities in Philostratus' Imagines: negotiating the boundaries between Self and Other" under the supervision of Prof. Zahra Newby and Prof. David Fearn. I am now teaching in the Department of Classics and Ancient History. I previously studied at the University of Siena (MA) and the University of Torino (BA).
Research interests
My research interests broadly concern Imperial Greek Literature, rhetoric and the Second Sophistic. My doctoral thesis explored the rhetorical performance of ekphrasis in the Imagines of Philostratus and the self-fashioning of the sophist who guides the tour of the Imagines' Neapolitan gallery. In particular, I sought to enhance the complexity of reading this text by examining the audience's interpretative perspective and by challenging any clear-cut categorisation of the painted figures. Other research interests include visual culture, reception studies and late antiquity.
Teaching
I have been a Graduate Teaching Assistant throughout my doctorate and I taught a wide range of Greek and Latin texts. This academic year 2026-27, I teach seminars for the Greek Literary Texts module, lectures for Encounters with Greek Texts and Hellenistic World modules and two Language Support groups for Latin and Greek.
Undergraduate modules (2026–2027)
- CX106/206/306: Greek Literary Texts
- CX113: Encounters with Greek Texts
- CX251: Hellenistic World
Drop-in hours
Teaching
Guest lecturing