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Dr Julia Kindt

Senior Lecturer
Department of Classics and Ancient History
School of Philosophical and Historical Inquiry (SOPHI)
Quadrangle Building A14
The University of Sydney
NSW 2006 Australia
office: H606 Quadrangle
phone: 0061 2 9351 6814
fax: 0061 2 9351 3918

Fields of Expertise

  • Ancient Greek History
  • Ancient Greek Religion, the Comparative Study of Religions
  • Oracles and Divination
  • Ancient Anthropology and Human/Animal Studies
  • Historiography (Ancient and Modern)
  • Herodotus

Education

  • Ph.D. Cambridge University, Department of Classics, and Trinity College
  • MA University of Munich (LMU) in ancient history

Fellowships, Grants and Awards

  • Visiting Fellow, Max Weber kolleg
    Erfurt University, 2013
  • Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Grant, 2012-2014
    (with A/ Prof. Benitez, A. Prof. Baltzly, Dr Johnson, Prof. Tarrant)
    “Plato’s myth voice, the identification and interpretation of ‘inspired speech’ in Plato”
  • Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Grant, 2012-2014
    (with Dr. Johnston, Prof. Iain Gardner, Dr Whitehouse, Dr Hunter)
    “The function of images in magical papyri and artefacts of ritual power from Late Antiquity”
  • Faculty of Arts Collaborative Research Scheme Grant (FACRS) 2011-2012
  • Faculty of Arts Teaching Excellence Award, University of Sydney, 2007 and 2012
  • Faculty of Arts Research Support Scheme Grant, 2008 and 2010
  • Katharine Graham Endowed Fellowship, University of Chicago, 2005
  • Harper Schmitt Fellow and Collegiate Assistant Professor, University of Chicago, 2003-2005

Current Project

Anthropology and Animality in Ancient Greece
This project explores the construction of animality in a variety of ancient world texts and contexts, including those of art, language, law, history, philosophy, religion and science. In the ancient world as in the modern, the question of the animal also invariably raises the question of whether – and how – humans differ from other creatures and what conclusion should be drawn from this distinction. It is in this sense, then, that the study of ancient animalities is really the study of ancient anthropology in its most ‘raw’ and literal sense.

Historical in scope and method and interdisciplinary in approach, this book responds to the discussion of the animal – and the appropriation of ancient-world arguments in the course of it – in continental European philosophy (Heidegger, Derrida, Agamben). The project aims to further our understanding of the cultural specificity of those lines that are drawn and re-drawn to separate man from ‘beast’ in Greek antiquity, from the Classical period to Roman Greece. In this way the book explicitly seeks to promote the significance of a historical perspective in a debate which has so far been dominated mainly by philosophy. It shows that despite all claims to the contrary Western conceptions of the animal are by no means universal but rather are part of an ongoing tradition, the origins of which can be found in the historical and cultural milieu of ancient Greece.

Books

  • Kindt, J. (in preparation) Anthropology and Animality in Ancient Greece. (see above, current project)
  • Kindt, J. (2012) Rethinking Greek Religion (Cambridge University Press).
  • Kindt, J, & Eidinow, E. (eds.) (in progress) Oxford Handbook of Ancient Greek Religion. Oxford
  • Kindt, J., Eidinow, E. & Osborne, R. (eds.) (in progress) The Theologies of Greek Religion.

Articles and Chapters

  • Kindt, J. (forthcoming) "The Inspired Voice: Oracular Communication as Enigmatic Communication" in Naiden & Talbert (eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Ancient Communications. OUP
  • Kindt, J. (forthcoming) “Oracular Shrines as Places of Religious Experience” in Rüpke (ed.) Blackwell Companion to the Archaeology of Religion in the Ancient World. London (5000 words)
  • Kindt, J. (forthcoming) “The Story of Theology and the Theology of the Story in Ancient Greece”
  • Kindt, J., (2011) “Ancient Greece”, Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology of Ritual and Religion (5000 word contribution)
  • Kindt, J., (forthcoming 2012) "Oracles", "Omphalos", "Pythia" in R. Bagnell, K. Brodersen, C. Champion, A. Erskine, S. Hübner (eds), Encyclopedia of Ancient History
  • Kindt, J. (2010) "Parmeniscus' Journey: Tracing Religious Visuality in Word and Wood", Classical Philology 105, 252-262
  • Kindt, J. (2009) "Polis Religion - A Critical Appreciation", Kernos 22, 9-34 Kernos website
  • Kindt, J. (2009) "On Tyrant Property Turned Ritual Object: Sacred Symbols and Political Power in Ancient Greece and in Social Anthropology", Arethusa 42, 211-250 Arethusa website
  • Kindt, J. (2009) "Anthropology in Greco-Roman Antiquity" in Klauck et. al. The Encyclopedia of the Bible and its Reception, Berlin, 136-145
  • Kindt, J. (2009) “Greek Religion,” in Boys-Stones, Graziosi, Vasunia (eds), Oxford Handbook of Hellenic Studies, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 364-377.
  • Kindt, J. (2008) "Oracular Ambiguity as a Mediation Triple" Classicum 334, 23-27.
  • Kindt, J. (2007) Apollo’s Oracle in Euripides' Ion: Ambiguous Identities in Fifth-Century Athens” AN 6 1-30; Ancient Narrative website
  • Kindt, J. (2006) “Delphic Oracle Stories and the Beginning of Historiography: Herodotus’ Croesus logos,” Classical Philology 101, 34-51 Classical Philology website
  • Kindt, J. (2001) “Von Schafen und Menschen: Delphische Orakelsprüche und soziale Kontrolle (On Sheep and Men: Delphic Oracles and Social Control),” in Brodersen, K. (ed.) Prognosis: Studien zur Funktion von Zukunftsvorhersagen in Literatur und Geschichte seit der Antike (Münster), 25-38

Reviews

  • Kindt, J. (forthcoming 2013) Review of E. Aston: Mixanthrôpoi: Animal-human hybrid deities in Greek religion (Liège 2011). Journal of Hellenic Studies
  • Kindt, J. (forthcoming 2013) Review of P. Eich: Gottesbild und Wahrnehmung: Studien zu Ambivaleuzen früher griechischer Götterdarstellungen (Stuttgard, 2011) Kilo.
  • Kindt, J., (forthcoming 2012) Review of M. Scott: Delphi and Olympia: The Spatial Politics of Panhellenism in Archaic and Classical Greece (Cambridge, 2010), Hermathena
  • Kindt, J. (2012) Review of W. Friese: Den Göttern so nah: Architektur und Topographie Griechischer Orakelheiligtümer. Stuttgart Journal of Hellenic Studies: 250-251
  • Kindt, J. (2010) Review of M. Flower: The Seer in Ancient Greece (Berkeley, 2008), History of Religions 49, 424-426
  • Kindt, J. (2009) Review of F. Graf: Apollo (London, 2009), Classical Review 59, 499-501
  • Kindt, J. (2009) Review of H. Löffler: Fehlentscheidungen bei Herodot (Munich, 2007), Journal of Hellenic Studies (JHS)
  • Kindt, J. (2006) Review of K. Zacharia: Converging Truths: Euripides’ Ion and the Athenian Quest for Self-Definition (Leiden, 2003), International Journal of the Classical Tradition 13.1 (IJCT), 125-127
  • Kindt, J. (2005) Review of J. Mikalson: Herodotus and Religion in the Persian Wars (Chapel Hill, 2003), Journal of Hellenic Studies (JHS) 125, 177
  • Kindt, J. (2005) Review of M. Wood: The Road to Delphi: The Life and Afterlife of Oracles (New York, 2003), Journal of Hellenic Studies (JHS) 125, 176
  • Kindt, J. (2004) Review of B. Dignas: Economy of the Sacred in Hellenistic and Roman Asia Minor (Oxford, 2002), Classical Philology 99, 272-275
  • Kindt, J. (2003) Review of D. Ogden: Greek and Roman Necromancy (Princeton, 2001), International Historical Review 25, 383
  • Kindt, J. (2002) Review of V. Rosenberger Griechische Orakel: Eine Kulturgeschichte (Darmstadt, 2001), Journal of Hellenic Studies 122, 177

Select Recent Conferences and Invited Papers

Select Academic Papers

  • University of Cambridge Department of Classics, 2012. Conference: Ancient Greek Theologies
    Paper: The Story of Theology and the Theology of Story in Ancient Greece
  • University of Reading, 2011
    Encountering the Divine: Between Gods and Men in the Ancient World
  • Australian National University (ANU), 2011
    Culture, Identity and Politics in the Ancient Mediterranean World: Conference in Honour of Erich Gruen
  • Birkbeck College, The University of London, 2010
    Paper: The Sex Appeal of the Inorganic: Seeing, Touching, and Knowing the Divine during the Second Sophistic
  • The Real and the Imaginary: Greek Religion and the Archaeology of the Sacred, Craven Seminar in Honour of Richard Gordon
    Department of Classics, University of Cambridge, 2009
    Paper: Problems of Theory and Method
  • The Olympian Gods: Local Representations, Universal Principles
    University of Durham, 2009
    Paper: The Local and the Universal Reconsidered: Representations of Zeus at Olympia
  • Perceptions of Polis Religion: Inside/Outside
    University of Reading, 2008
    Keynote paper: Polis Religion - A Critical Appreciation
  • Stanford University, Department of Classics, 2008
    Paper: Geertz, Gould and the Symbolic Dimension of Ancient Greek Religion
  • 139. Annual Conference of the American Philological Association (APA), Chicago, 2008
    Paper: Geertz, Gould and the Problem of Defining Greek Religion
  • 138. Annual Conference of the American Philological Association (APA), San Diego 2007
    Paper: Beyond the Polis: Rethinking Greek Religion

Select General Audience

  • (2010) Herodotus and the Discovery of History (Sydney Key Thinkers Series)
  • (2010) On Knowledge (Sydney Consortium)
  • (2009) Wondrous Antiquities: The Histories of Herodotus (Introduction)
  • (2008) The Smith Family's Learning for Life Program, University of Sydney
  • (2008) Oresteia Study Day, University of Sydney
  • (2007) Canberra Friends of the AAIA
  • (2007) Greek Festival of Sydney

Teaching

Undergraduate units include:

  • ANHS1600 Foundations for Ancient Greece (ca 300 students)
  • ANHS2605 Ancient Greek Religion (ca 140 students)
  • ANHS2612 Historiography Ancient and Modern (ca 60 students)
  • ANHS3605 Documents and Ancient History (Greek)
  • ANHS3609 Herodotus and his World (ca 75 students)
  • ANHS4000 Honours Seminar Greek Tragedy and Society (ca 12 students)
  • ANHS4000 Honours Seminar Re-Visiting Delphi: Oracles and the Oracular from Antiquity to the Present (ca 12 students)

Postgraduate units include:

  • Ancient Religions, Historiography

Recently supervised theses

  • Mystery Religions and Polis Religion (Ph.D.; ongoing)
  • The Body, Violence and Critical Enquiry in Ancient Greece (M.Phil.; ongoing)
  • Immortality in Heraclitus and Plato (Ph.D.; associate supervision, ongoing)
  • The Archaeology of Household Religion (Ph.D.; associate supervision, ongoing)
  • Asebeia: The Construction of Religious Orthodoxy in Classical Athens (M.Phil.; submitted 2011)
  • Herodotus' Philosophy of History (M.Phil.; submitted 2007)
  • Numerous honours theses on Herodotus, Greco-Roman historiography and Greek Religion.

Academic Service

Conference Organiser

  • July 2012. The Theologies of Greek Religion, Department of Classics, Cambridge University (jointly organised with Professor Robin Osborne and Dr Esther Eidinow)
  • July 2009. The Real and the Imaginary: A Conference in Honour of Richard Gordon, Department of Classics, Cambridge University
    (jointly organised with Professor Robin Osborne and Dr Michael Scott)

Academic Referee

  • Cambridge University Press (CUP)
  • Oxford University Press (OUP)
  • Routledge
  • Classical Antiquity (CA)
  • History of Religions
  • Occasional Papers of the Australian Association for the Study of Religions (AASR)
  • Antichthon

Member of Editorial Board

  • Journal of Ancient History (a new journal published by de Gruyter)
  • Advisory Board, Oxford Handbooks Online (OHO), Oxford University Press

Departmental and Faculty Service

  • Academic Promotions Committee, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Sydney, 2011
  • Postgraduate Coursework Coordinator, SOPHI, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, 2010 - present
  • Group Leader, Tutors Development Program, Semester 2, 2010
  • Ancient World Studies Coordinator, University of Sydney, Semester 2, 2008 - present
  • Research Committee, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Sydney, Semester 1, 2008
  • Postgraduate Research Coordinator, Department of Classics, University of Sydney, 2006-2007
  • Co-Chair, Society of Fellows, University of Chicago, 2004-2005

Other

  • Organised the visit of Professors John and Jean Comaroff to the University of Sydney, April/May 2012 See details here
  • Council member of the Australian Archaeological Institute at Athens (AAIA) 2009 - present
  • I have also served as external examiner of several PhD and MA theses and as an external referee for academic promotions.