C. May Marston Lecture, Est. 1991

The annual Marston Lecture at Seattle Pacific University is presented by the faculty member appointed to the C. May Marston professorship, named in honor of C. May Marston, whose influence extends back to the earliest years of Seattle Pacific.  During a remarkable 55 years as a faculty member, Dr. Marston instilled a love for language through her classes in Latin, Greek, French, German and English. The quintessential scholar, Dr. Marston was a methodical drillmaster whose sharp sense of humor, deep concern for students and simplicity of faith won over many a reluctant intellect..

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The 2012 C. May Marston Lecture

Real Beauty in Plato?: Sifting the Hippias Major

Owen Ewald, C. May Marston Assistant Professor of Classics

Tuesday, February 7, 2012, 2 p.m.

Demaray Hall 150

What is beauty? This year's Marston Lecture will address the question with ideas proposed by Plato in the Hippias Major and examine them in light of other philosophers and theologians, art and architecture, and recent research in psychology.

Owen Ewald, Ph.D., grew up in Washington, D.C., a city with abundant Greco-Roman-inspired architecture.  After reading historian J. David Bolter's work Turing's Man, he studied Latin for 17 years, Greek for 13 years, and some Sanskrit.  He received a doctorate in classics from the University of Washington in 1999, and his dissertation explored Roman historiography.  His articles on ancient funerary practices, ancient roads, and Vergil's rhyme schemes have appeared in Athenaeum, Bryn Mawr Classical Review, and Harvard Studies in Classical Philology.  Dr. Ewald has taught Latin, Greek, classical literature, ancient history, and art history at Seattle Pacific University since 2001 and was named to the C. May Marston Professorship in 2005.