HUNTINGTON — Marshall University’s Wars Within, The Wars Without program, which aims to help local veterans reflect on their experiences, is hosting an upcoming lecture in January and a series of discussion groups for veterans in February and March.
A lecture by Dr. Lauren Donovan Ginsberg of Duke University is scheduled to be livestreamed at 3 p.m. Friday, Jan. 21. It can be viewed via livestream in Room 402 of Drinko Library or via Zoom. The presentation is titled “How Do We Commemorate the Nameless in War?” and is the second lecture offered as part of the Wars Within program. Those who would like to attend the lecture virtually can visit www.marshall.edu/warswithin to find a link.
“Dr. Ginbserg’s lecture will explore the themes of commemoration and the unknown soldier in ancient war,” said Dr. Robin Riner, a professor of anthropology, who has spearheaded the program with Dr. Christina Franzen, an associate professor of classics.
Ginsberg is an associate professor of classics at Duke University, and a specialist in Latin literature with a focus on the early empire of Rome, the age of Nero and its reception, and civil war, its narratives and symbol systems.
The discussion groups are scheduled for 10 a.m. to noon on Feb. 5 and 19, and March 5 and 19, at the Vet Center at 3135 16th St. Road in Huntington. Their intent is to give veterans a chance to join other veterans in reading and discussing texts about ancient as well as modern war. The discussions will be led by veterans.
“This project aims to bring multigenerational veterans into meaningful discussion with each other, such that by narrating, remembering, and bearing witness to their experiences they can develop a path to healing and recovery,” Franzen said.
Those interested can register at www.marshall.edu/warswithin. Reading materials will be provided upon registration.
Anyone interested in more information can contact either of the faculty members leading the project, Riner at conleyr@marshall.edu or Franzen at franzen@marshall.edu.
The project is offered with support from the West Virginia Humanities Council, and Marshall’s Center for Teaching and Learning, Office of Academic Affairs, College of Liberal Arts and departments of Humanities, Sociology and Anthropology.
