For Allison Glazebrook, deciphering ancient history is key to understanding the issues of present-day societies.
The Professor of Classics explores the social and cultural history of ancient Greece, focusing on women, gender, sexuality and slavery. Her work centres the experiences of marginalized groups in ancient times, specifically Classical Athens.
"Many Classical texts we study were authored by males, and when they talk about underrepresented groups of people, the tone is often denigrating and objectifying," she said. "I'm trying to change the narrative to shed light on alternative perspectives."
Glazebrook's exceptional teaching, service and contributions of knowledge and research recently earned her the Classical Association of Canada's (CAC) 2025 Award of Merit for outstanding services to the discipline.
Her interest in gender equity and representation has shaped her as both a researcher and an educator.
Through her courses, she helps students question texts, and their authors, and explore power dynamics by examining topics such as ancient slavery and household structures.
Glazebrook empowers her students to take an active role in the learning process through the development of open-access learning resources. Working with students, who each research a chapter, she leads a rigorous editorial process that results in open-source books covering key themes of the era.
Her co-edited textbook with Oxford University Press focused on integrating diversity and multiple perspectives with more traditional topics and approaches.
"While Classical Athens is often equated with the elite male population, the city was quite diverse; privileged male citizens were only a small subsect," she said. "There were women, children, traders, entertainment workers and enslaved people working in all facets of industry and culture."
Glazebrook has also authored numerous publications, including a 2021 book about sexual labour in Ancient Greece.
Sexual labour is a critical historical subject that, according to Glazebrook, connects and intersects with gender studies, women, slavery, sexuality, economy and civic space.
"If we can read through bias in texts, we can find ways to pull out different ideas about these marginalized groups like female sexual labourers that speak to the wider culture and life in ancient Greek society," she said.
Glazebrook said this approach broadens how people think about the ancient Greeks and philosophers, revealing the complexity of society.
"Power dynamics and gender representation are themes that remain critically relevant in modern times," she said.
Beyond her research and teaching, Glazebrook strives to advance diversity within her field. As previous President of the CAC, she spearheaded new awards celebrating diversity and research impact.
The Elaine Fantham Award in Public Engagement highlights public outreach work of scholars, an important aspect of research Glazebrook aims to encourage. The Mosaic Scholarship encourages and supports historically underrepresented groups in Canada in the discipline in Classics.
"Through my research I try to promote the many voices of the ancient world, and it's critical we find ways to promote diversity in the current day Classics field as well," she said.
