As an undergraduate, Bryan studied philosophy at Williams College. In 2008, he entered the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits). From 2012-2014, he completed his MA in the Department of Classics at WashU. He then taught as a Visiting Instructor of Classics at Xavier University in Cincinnati (2014-2016). For the next four years, Bryan resided in France, completing his theological training as a Jesuit. He returned to the Department for doctoral studies in the fall of 2020.
Bryan works primarily on archaic Greek verse. In general, his research interests revolve around poetic kleos: the promise and power of song to generate “imperishable fame” or “undying glory.” In his Master’s thesis on the Iliad, he showed how charis informs the structure of the heroic narrative. Bryan also worked on the Homeric psyche, exploring the tension between continuity and loss of personal identity after death. Doctoral studies have led Bryan to expand the scope of his research to include Greek lyric poetry, as well. Under the supervision of Dr. Zoe Stamatopoulou, his dissertation (currently underway) considers mortality and immortalization in Pindaric epinician. Entitled "Pindar's Underworld Poetics: Death, Darkness, and Afterlife in the Odes," the project has developed through a number of academic presentations: CAMWS (2022); The Bryn Mawr College Graduate Group Symposium (2023); and the Society for Classical Studies (2024).
