Silvia Speriani

I studied in Italy at both the University of Pavia and the Scuola Normale Superiore. I spent long periods studying, conducting research, and teaching abroad, including an MPhil at the University of Cambridge (St John’s College), postgraduate research scholarships at J. Gutenberg-Universität Mainz and Universität Konstanz, and a visiting PhD position at the University of Oxford (St John’s College).

After completing my PhD at the Scuola Normale Superiore, I was awarded an IRC Postdoctoral Fellowship at Trinity College Dublin and a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Manchester.

I started working as an assistant professor in Latin Literature, language, and culture at the University of Birmingham in October 2025.

My research approach aims to combine an in-depth reading of ancient sources (both textual and archaeological) with a theoretical approach to provide nuanced insights into the ancient world. I am also passionate about exposing students to theoretical approaches, demonstrating how studying ancient worlds can provide valuable insights into our own.

My research follows two main theoretical lines: cognitive/linguistic approaches and comparative/reception studies. My current project builds on the research funded by my British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship, and evaluates communication devices in ancient texts, with a focus on how perceptive tools and emotional triggers in textual communication cooperate to shape representations, perceptions, and validations of social reality. In my doctoral research and IRC Postdoctoral Fellowship, I applied reception and comparative theories to the study of intra- and inter- cultural dynamics between ancient Greece and Rome, with a particular focus on the ancient receptions of Telamonian Ajax.