David Konstan

(Jay) David Konstan (November 1, 1940 – May 2, 2024) was an American classicist and academic, known for his work on notions of emotion and beauty in the ancient world, as well as others on Latin poetry, Epicurean philosophy, the Greek novel, ancient ideas of friendship, and other topics. A Professor of Classics at NYU, he previously spent three decades teaching at Brown University, where he was John Rowe Workman Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Classics and Professor Emeritus of Comparative Literature.

Konstan received his B.A. (in mathematics), M.A., and Ph.D. (in Latin) degrees, all from Columbia University. In the Fall of 2016, Konstan was a Fellow at the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study in Uppsala, Sweden.

Konstan died May 2, 2024, at the age of 83.