Lawrence Kim

Lawrence Kim is a Professor in the Classical Studies Department at Trinity University since 2010, with two research leaves at University of Heidelberg (2013-14, 2015-16) supported by an Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellowship. His academic journey includes positions at the University of Washington, Seattle, and the University of Texas at Austin.

• Education:
  • Ph.D., Princeton University
  • B.A., Brown University

Kim specializes in the Second Sophistic movement, focusing on Greek literature and cultural revival under the Roman Empire (50-250 CE). His research spans Homeric reception, literary criticism, historiography, and ancient prose style, with particular interest in how Imperial authors engaged with their classical past. His 2010 monograph Homer between History and Fiction in Imperial Greek Literature won the Charles J. Goodwin Award of Merit from the Society for Classical Studies.

Recent publications (2017-2022) explore themes like anti-classicizing movements, stylistic politics, and narrative techniques across authors such as Heliodorus, Galen, and Plutarch, often revealing cross-disciplinary parallels between literary and medical writing. His current long-term projects, The Idea of the Archaic in Imperial Greek Culture and The Politics of Style in Imperial Greece, continue this analytical thread.

Scientific Awards:

• Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellowship
• Charles J. Goodwin Award of Merit (2011)

Kim contributes to undergraduate education through courses like Great Books of the Ancient World (HUMA) and serves as its director, bridging classical curricula with interdisciplinary frameworks.