Ainsworth O’Brien-Moore (June 7, 1897 – December 31, 1936) was an American

classical philologist Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

Biography

The brother of actress

Erin O'Brien-Moore Erin O'Brien-Moore (born Annette O'Brien-Moore, May 2, 1902 – May 3, 1979) was an American actress. She created the role of Rose in the original Broadway production of Elmer Rice's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, '' Street Scene'' (1929), and was ...

, Ainsworth O’Brien-Moore attended Harvard School in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and studied classics at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

, where he received his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in 1916, his

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in 1918 and his Ph.D. in 1922. He worked as instructor in Latin at Princeton and in 1923 at

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

. From 1925 he was assistant professor of classics at

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

, and was appointed associate professor in 1936. At age 39, O'Brien-Moore was killed in a car accident near New Haven, Connecticut, in the early morning hours of December 31, 1936. Injured in the crash was his wife, the former Margaret M. O'Donnell, who was driving the car. The couple had a son, Michael. O'Brien-Moore's scholarship covered different areas of Roman literature and culture. As a graduate student he collaborated with his supervisor David Magie in editing and translating the

Scriptores Historiae Augustae The ''Historia Augusta'' (English: ''Augustan History'') is a late Roman collection of biographies, written in Latin, of the Roman emperors, their junior colleagues, designated heirs and usurpers from 117 to 284. Supposedly modeled on the sim ...

for the

Loeb Classical Library The Loeb Classical Library (LCL; named after James Loeb; , ) is a series of books originally published by Heinemann in London, but is currently published by Harvard University Press. The library contains important works of ancient Greek and L ...

. His thesis was an examination of the phenomenon of

insanity Insanity, madness, lunacy, and craziness are behaviors performed by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity can be manifest as violations of societal norms, including a person or persons becoming a danger to themselves or to ...

as it was perceived and described by ancient Greek and Roman authors. While being limited to canon authors without taking in account parodistic or medical treatises, his work was an enormous effort and advanced knowledge of this field significantly. In Germany it was praised by the classicist and religious studies scholar

Otto Weinreich Otto Karl Weinreich (1886–1972) was a German classical philologist. He is noted for his study of the ''Lukan Befreiungswunder'' through his work ''Gebet und Wunder''. Weinrich's works were focused on the so-called liberation miracles such as t ...

.''Deutsche Literaturzeitung'', Vol. 48 (1927), col. 2297–2299 = ''Ausgewählte Schriften''. Vol. 2 (1973), p. 242–245. As an expert on various aspects of Roman culture, Moore was invited by

Wilhelm Kroll Wilhelm Kroll (October 7, 1869 – April 21, 1939) was a German classicist who was full professor at the universities of Greifswald (1899–1906), Münster (1906–1913) and Breslau (1913–1935). Education and Career Kroll was born in the town ...

to write articles for the internationally renowned '' Realencyclopädie der Classischen Altertumswissenschaft'' on the

Roman Senate The Roman Senate ( la, Senātus Rōmānus) was a governing and advisory assembly in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, being established in the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in ...

and the ''

Senatus consultum A ''senatus consultum'' (Latin: decree of the senate, plural: ''senatus consulta'') is a text emanating from the senate in Ancient Rome. It is used in the modern phrase ''senatus consultum ultimum''. Translated into French as ''sénatus-consulte' ...

''. He was life member of the

American Philological Association The Society for Classical Studies (SCS), formerly known as the American Philological Association (APA) is a non-profit North American scholarly organization devoted to all aspects of Greek and Roman civilization founded in 1869. It is the preemine ...

(since 1923).

Select publications

* Together with David Magie: ''Scriptores Historiae Augustae''. 3 volumes, Cambridge/London 1921/1924/1932 (''

'') * ''Madness in Ancient Literature''. Weimar 1924 (Ph.D. thesis, Princeton University) * ''Senatus''. In: ''Paulys Realencyclopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft'' (RE). Suppl. VI, Stuttgart 1935, col. 660–800 (translated by Ruth Keimer and Wilhelm Kroll). * ''Senatus consultum''. In: ''Paulys Realencyclopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft'' (RE). Suppl. VI, Stuttgart 1935, col. 800–812 (translated by Ruth Keimer and Wilhelm Kroll). * ''M. Tullius Cratippus, Priest of Rome''. In: ''Yale Classical Studies''. Vol. 8 (1942), p. 23–50

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:OBrien Moore, Ainsworth 1897 births 1936 deaths Yale University faculty American philologists Road incident deaths in Connecticut Harvard-Westlake School alumni Princeton University alumni 20th-century philologists

Biography

Select publications

Further reading

References