PROFILE
Dr Christopher Mallan
Started at UWA: 2018
Internationally trained historian exploring a new perspective on Ancient Rome
Dr Chris Mallan is a senior lecturer at UWA and a historian of the politics and culture of the Roman Empire. He has a particular interest in how people of the Roman Empire thought about their history and their approaches to the writing of history. It was during his early years of learning that he first began to take an interest in the Roman Empire, and this interest now steers his career and research.
Born and raised in Brisbane, Dr Mallan began his studies of the classical world at secondary school, and then at the University of Queensland, before undertaking a doctorate at the University of Oxford. He then lived and taught in Oxford for six years before moving to UWA in 2018. Ancient texts can provide insight into a time that we can no longer access, and Dr Mallan believes studying these texts will be relevant and valuable to our modern world.
I enjoy reading the writings of individuals from the classical world. Ancient Greek and Latin literature is always ‘good to think with’ and I believe in the continuing relevance of classical culture to the modern world.Dr Christopher Mallan
Projects
Historical Commentary of Books 57 and 58 of Roman History by Cassius Dio
Dr Mallan is currently working on a historical commentary on Books 57 and 58 of the Roman History, as written by the third century historian Cassius Dio. The books cover the reign of the Emperor Tiberius (AD 14-37).
This will be the first scholarly commentary on these particular books of Dio’s history since the edition of Reimarus from 1750. Dio is one of our most important literary authorities for the early Empire, which makes this study even more exciting.
Cassius Dio Network
Dr Mallan’s work on Cassius Dio is feeding into an ongoing project that aims to bring forward the perception of this key historian of Ancient Rome. The network is funded by a collection of Danish and North American universities, bringing together scholars with a particular interest in the historian. For more on this project, visit the University of Southern Denmark.
Teaching
Dr Mallan is a believer in the value of face-to-face teaching and of the Socratic method as a way of working with students to help them form their answers to historical problems. This involves student participation in debate, reasoning and critical thinking. He enjoys the energy and enthusiasm students bring to the study of the classics.
He currently teaches in the following:
Contact Dr Chris Mallan
Dr Mallan is available to supervise qualified candidates looking to work on a topic relating to Greco-Roman historiography and Roman political culture under the Roman Empire.