Rate My Professor Joel Gordon

Dr Joel Gordon is a classics scholar and administrator at the University of Otago in the Division of Humanities. He earned his PhD in Classics from the University of Otago in 2019, with a doctoral thesis titled "Opening up the World Below: A New ‘Reading’ of Ancient Greek Eschatological Topography." His academic journey began with studies in music performance, aiming to train as a high school music teacher, which he complemented with a Bachelor of Arts. This led to a profound shift toward Classics and the ancient world. During his time as a PhD candidate, Gordon served as a tutor in the Classics department, engaging deeply with ancient literature and mythology. He credits his classical training with honing critical reading and analytical skills essential to his current role. Today, he holds the position of Senior PBRF and Research Outputs Administrator in the Research Integrity Office at the University of Otago.

Gordon's research focuses on ancient conceptions of the underworld in literature and myth, alongside the reception of classical antiquity in modern popular culture, including films, comics, and gaming. These interests reveal how contemporary representations often reflect modern socio-cultural assumptions more than ancient realities. Key publications include the journal article "When Superman smote Zeus: analysing violent deicide in popular culture" (Classical Receptions Journal, 2017), which has received 14 citations; "Reconsidering the Tartarean Geography of the Iliad: Traces of a Far-Away Tartarus and the Narrative Significance of Localisation" (Antichthon, 2022); and "‘Solving’ the Paradox of the Odyssean Ethiopians’ Twin Dual Localization: The Narrative Significance of Literary Spatiality" (Mnemosyne, 2024). His book chapters feature "‘I Am Hercules’ in 2014: Rebooting and Rationalizing a Modern Hero" (The Modern Hercules, 2020) and "Remembering in the Real World: Katabatic and Natural Deathscapes" (A Quest for Remembrance: The Underworld in Classical and Modern Culture, 2020). In 2025, Gordon co-edited the special issue "Worlds Above and Below: Supernatural Worlds in Classics, Judaism, and Early Christianity" for the Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha, stemming from a conference at Otago. He has presented at prestigious venues, including a conference at the University of Cambridge and multiple Australasian Society for Classical Studies annual meetings, such as on eschatological topography (2018). With over 24 citations across his works, Gordon's contributions enrich scholarly discourse on classical receptions and eschatology.