Never Alone: Solitude and Its Challenges in Eastern Roman Society

In homes and churches, caves and communities, and away from home in the natural world and in exile and pilgrimages, Eastern Roman people pursued solitude as a way of getting closer to God. In the introduction to this panel, Bronwen Neil will introduce solitude in Byzantium and various practical challenges, health impacts, emotional and creative responses associated with the solitary life. Secular experiences of solitude at work, at leisure and in nature are also presented as an often overlooked counterpoint to religious solitude in the Byzantine world.