DIDASKALOS: THE INVENTION OF THE TEACHER IN CLASSICAL ATHENS
A Dissertation
Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School
of Cornell University
In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
by
Lindsay Lauren Sears-Tam
May 2013 © 2013 Lindsay Lauren Sears-Tam
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED DIDASKALOS: THE INVENTION OF THE TEACHER IN CLASSICAL ATHENS
Lindsay Lauren Sears-Tam, Ph. D.
Cornell University 2013
This dissertation deals with the role of the teacher in fifth- and fourth-century Athens through an examination of the scope of the Greek word didaskalos. The first part of this investigation consists of an analysis of the various types of educational figures whose roles overlapped to some extent that of the didaskalos, beginning with the legendary educators Cheiron, Phoenix, and Mentor, and touching upon the characters of the erastês, the paidagôgos, and the Sophist. The second part is a study of the mechanism and process for teaching as described in the literary sources, focusing in particular on the importance of imitation in the student-teacher relationship. The third part approaches the aims and effects of teaching as described by Greek authors, especially the various ways that physis can be influenced by ones teacher, especially for the worse. The final part deals with the figure of Socrates, in particular, the way he is portrayed as a didaskalos in the texts of Aristophanes, Plato, and Xenophon.
All in all, the pattern of Greek authors’ usage of the word didaskalos suggests a strong societal belief in the potential power of the teacher - both inside and outside of the schoolroom - to improve or harm the polis. iii
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
Lindsay Sears-Tam began studying Latin as a Junior at Cony High School in Augusta,
Maine in 2001. In the fall of 2003, she matriculated at Smith College, where she endeavored to read as much Greek and Latin literature as possible. In 2007, she completed an honors thesis on etymological wordplay in Ovid’s Fasti, and graduated magna cum laude, earning an A.B. with high honors in Classics. In the fall of that year, she began graduate studies in Classics at Cornell University, focusing on comparative linguistics, etymology and aetiology, and textual transmission. In the spring of 2010, she began working with Professor Jeff Rusten on ancient education. This collaboration led to her writing a dissertation on the development of the teacher figure in ancient Greek literature. She received a Ph.D. from Cornell in May 2013 and joined the faculty at
Greenwich Academy as an Upper School Latin teacher starting in the 2013-14 school year. iv
For Claire, with the utmost love and appreciation
for your endless patience.
And for my mom:
the most inspiring teacher I know. v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS