Abstract
The present work analyses the meanings of expatriation in the trajectory of Moses I. Finley (1912-1986), an American historian who played an important role in the reconfiguration of the study of Greco-Roman Ancient History in England. The article begins with a characterization of Finley’s academic “success”, accompanied by a critique of how Finley’s peers connect this success to his condition as ex-patriot. It then proceeds to describe the conditions of his move to England highlighting relevant features of Finley’s trajectory. This is followed by an analysis of certain evidence in Finley’s writings of the early 1950s that helped assure his acceptance in the social world of English classicists. Finally, the article maps both constraints and possibilities imposed on Finley due to his status as a “foreigner” (or foreignized historian) in the British academic world. The discussion ultimately hopes to advance useful elements for the comparative discussion of exile.
Keywords:
Intellectual in exile; M. I. Finley; Classics