Matthieu Réal

Matthieu Réal is a Visiting Lecturer in Classics at Cornell University, affiliated with the College of Arts and Sciences. His research focuses on ancient literary interpretation, Greek and Latin literature, and the history of Aristotelianism. He holds a Ph.D. from Cornell (2023) and prior degrees from Padua University (M.A., 2016) and institutions in the Netherlands and France.

• Ph.D., Classics, Cornell University (2023)
• M.A., Classics, Padua University (2016)

His current book project reimagines the origins of Greek literary criticism through analysis of texts like Aristophanes' Frogs, Plato's Protagoras, and the Derveni Papyrus. He explores how ancient audiences employed sophisticated exegetical techniques before Aristotle's Poetics. Réal teaches courses on classical reception, including Odyssey film adaptations and Dante/Walcott comparisons, while collaborating with the Cornell Prison Education Program to teach classics in New York prisons.

Recent publications include studies on Zoilus of Amphipolis' Homer criticism (2023) and Andronikos of Rhodes' Aristotelian exegesis (2022), both analyzing pre-classical hermeneutical practices. His work bridges philological analysis with cultural history, emphasizing textual interpretation's societal role.