Craig Timothy Jendza
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences - ClassicsRoom 1025
I received my MA and PhD in Classics from Ohio State University, as well as two undergraduate degrees in Classics and business management from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. At KU, I teach Greek and Latin at all levels and courses in Greek literature and civilization. My research interests are diverse and interdisciplinary, seeking to analyze the ancient world within a variety of frameworks: Greek drama, mythology, linguistics, and humor. I am currently writing a monograph, Paracomedy: Appropriations of Comedy in Greek Drama, on the practice of paracomedy – how Greek tragedians incorporated elements from Greek comedy into their plays.
Education
Ph.D., Classics, Ohio State University
M.A., Classics, Ohio State University
B.A., Classical Civilization, University of Massachusetts
BBA, Business Management, University of Massachusetts
Teaching
I teach a wide variety of courses at KU in Greek language and literature. Most recently, I developed new undergraduate courses on Ancient Epic Tales and Ethics in Greek Tragedy and graduate seminars on Aristophanes and Euripides. In my teaching, I endeavor to create an engaging and collaborative learning environment.
Teaching Interests
- Greek Language and Literature
- Greek Mythology and Religion
- Ancient Epic Tales
- Ethics in Greek Tragedy
- Euripides
- Aristophanes
Research
My book project, Paracomedy: Appropriations of Comedy in Greek Tragedy (Oxford University Press, 2020), explores the relationship between the literary and performed genres of ancient Greek tragedy and comedy, and to a lesser extent, satyr drama. I examine the previously overlooked practice of paracomedy: how Greek tragedians composed some of their tragedies by appropriating tropes from Greek comedy, such as comic costumes, scenes, and language. While scholars regularly note the way that comedy satirizes tragedy (paratragedy), they have ignored the possibility of appropriations from comedy into tragedy. This book seeks to cross the Classics sub-disciplines of tragedy and comedy and to treat Greek drama holistically by demonstrating that paracomedy was a productive phenomenon and prominent feature in Greek tragedy.
Research Interests
- Greek Drama (especially Euripides and Aristophanes)
- Greek Myth and Religion
- Indo-European Linguistics
Service
I currently serve as the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Classics Department.
Selected Publications
Jendza, C. T. (in press). Paracomedy: Appropriations of Comedy in Greek Drama, New York, NY, USA: Oxford University Press.
Jendza, C. T. (2015). Bearing Razors and Swords: Paracomedy in Euripides’ Orestes. American Journal of Philology, 136.3, 447-468.
Jendza, C. T. (2014). Supplemental Persuasive Analogies in PGM V. 70-95. Archiv für Religionsgeschichte, 15, 247-268.
Jendza, C. T. (2013). Theseus the Ionian in Bacchylides 17 and Indo-Iranian Apam Napat. Journal of Indo-European Studies, 41, 431-457.
