Janet Martin, associate professor of classics, emeritus, and an expert in medieval Latin, died of cardiovascular disease at home in Princeton, New Jersey, on Aug. 30, 2203. She was 84.
Janet Martin, associate professor of classics, emeritus, and an expert in medieval Latin, died of cardiovascular disease at home in Princeton, New Jersey, on Aug. 30, 2203. She was 84.
Professor Martin taught me Early Medieval Latin, where we read among other texts Augustine’s Confessions, and was my undergraduate thesis advisor. She was a wonderful and inspiring teacher and a dedicated, patient, and thorough advisor. The acknowledgments page of my Princeton thesis included these words: “First and foremost, my advisor Janet Martin provided much needed definition and organization for my topic. She read many pages of xeroxed scribbling with patience and good humor, and annotated her very insightful suggestions. She also encouraged me with lots of good advice on the psychology of thesis writing.” For many years I taught Latin, before embarking on an MA in Theology and a DPhil in Patristics. I thanked her again in my doctoral thesis acknowledgments as I continued on a path she helped me find while her student. I now teach courses on Augustine and Late Antiquity (what once was classified as Early Medieval), from both a theological and a historical perspective. But it all started in a classroom in East Pyne with a gifted and dedicated teacher. I am forever grateful, and wish I had kept her up to date on just how much her teaching had helped set the trajectory of my life and career. Rest in peace, dear Professor Martin. My heartfelt condolences to the department, and especially to her family and friends.