Christopher Anaforian

Christopher Anaforian is currently a PhD candidate in Classics and History at the University of St Andrews, supervised by Dr Henry Stead and Dr Gillian Mitchell. He completed his BA in History with an emphasis in Middle Eastern and European history, and a Minor in Classics from the University of San Francisco (2020). Following that, in 2023, he completed his MLitt at the University of St Andrews (with Distinction) writing his dissertation on the reception of Rome in socialist journals, newspapers, and magazines

His PhD project explores working-class and Marxist classical reception in the United States during the interwar period (1918-1939). The primary focus of this project is the highly popular, working-class-oriented publishing series, the Little Blue Books published by Emanuel Haldeman-Julius in Girard, Kansas which published ideologically-infused translations of ancient texts at low costs.

Christopher is also the Postgraduate Representative and Social Media Lead for the Classical Reception Studies Network (CRSN). He also regularly contributes to Brave New Classics, a project that explores the relationship between communism and classics (Brave New Classics).

2024-2025 Semester 1

• AN1003 - Ancient Empires
• CL1004 - Myth and Community in Ancient Greek Literature

2024-2025 Semester 2

• ID1007 Ancient Origins, Modern Worlds

Christopher's main research interests are generally related to Classical Reception with a particular focus on:

• Subaltern access to classical culture
• Communist/Socialist/Left-wing (and occasionally anti-Communist) classical reception
• Radical reinterpretations of ancient dramas, texts, and history
• Postcolonial approaches to antiquity

Christopher has also co-founded the St Andrews Reception Research Group (STARR) which meets weekly to create a sense of community and foster collaboration between departments and researchers interested in classical reception.