Anna Bonnell Freidin (Princeton): Bodyscapes: Giving Birth in the Roman Empire

How did Greeks and Romans imagine the hidden processes of generation, gestation, and birth? Focusing on the first several centuries of the common era, this talk explores how – and why – childbirth and its risks were often understood through analogies and metaphors drawn from phenomena in the non-human environment.

Anna Bonnell Freidin’s work combines Roman imperial history, the history of science and medicine, and the history of women and gender. She recently completed her PhD in Classics at Princeton University, with a certificate in Gender and Sexuality Studies. In Fall 2018, she will be an assistant professor of History at the University of Michigan.