How did scholars use anthropology, sociology, and psychology to study ancient Greece and Rome in the 20th century?

In the 20th century, classical scholarship underwent a significant transformation as researchers began to integrate methodologies from the social sciences to move beyond traditional philological and historical approaches.

Anthropology and Sociology

In France, Louis Gernet established a prominent school of scholars who applied modern sociological and anthropological techniques to the study of antiquity. In England, pioneers such as Jane Harrison and Gilbert Murray utilized anthropological and sociological methods to analyze ancient Greek culture, a trend also shared by F.M. Cornford in his work on Plato and pre-Socratic philosophy. These approaches allowed scholars to interpret social relations, rituals, and cultural performances as "texts" rather than merely seeking to subsume historical events under rigid laws.12

Psychology

Psychological insights were also increasingly applied to classical studies. E.R. Dodds was a notable figure in this movement; he integrated psychological and anthropological knowledge to analyze early Greek thought and produced influential commentaries on classical literature, such as Euripides’ Bacchae and Plato’s Gorgias. This shift reflected a broader interdisciplinary effort to understand the ancient world not just through its political or military history, but through the underlying mentalities and social structures of its people.12