Tazuko van Berkel
In The World Behind Words I Science.
DRIVEN BY A DEEPLY FELT FASCINATION, CLASSICIST AND PHILOSOPHER TAZUKO VAN BERKEL
EXPLORES HOW THE IDEAS BEHIND ANCIENT GREEK WORDS CAN FREE US FROM TODAY'S
LIMITING CONCEPTIONS OF HUMANITY
A short documentary about classicist and philosopher Tazuko van Berkel
by Marleine van der Werf.
The words we use every day shape the world around us and the relationships we form with others.This insight is the driving force behind the work of classicist and
philosopher Tazuko van Berkel.
Day and night, she delves into Ancient Greek texts in search of concepts that reveal a fundamentally different worldview. Take, for example, ξένος (xenos), which
remarkably can mean guest, host and stranger all at once. What does such a radically different understanding of a word in the past tell us about our relationship to
‘the other’ today?
This philosophical, contemplative short documentary follows Van Berkel on her quest. By uncovering the Ancient Greek worldview behind words such as economy,
friendship, desire, trust or gratitude, she invites us to question – and perhaps even let go of – our habitual ways of thinking. In doing so, this award-winning scholar
shows how the study of the classics is highly relevant to the present.
BIOGRAPHIES
TAZUKO VAN BERKEL
Classicist and philosopher Tazuko van Berkel (1979) works at the intersection of Greek language,
ancient history and philosophy. She is particularly interested in contemporary habits of thought:
the seemingly self-evident ways in which modern people unconsciously view the world. Such
habits of thought are embedded in language as well. By mapping the worldviews hidden behind
Ancient Greek words – and placing them next to our current worldview – she reveals blind spots in
our thinking.
Van Berkel earned her PhD at Leiden University and has been an Assistant Professor of Greek
Language and Literature there since 2017. In her book The Economics of Friendship (2020), she
describes how the rise of market thinking in ancient Greece transformed ideas about friendship.
Her mission is to make people aware of their habits of thought. What makes her approach unique
is that she actively engages with society, conducting Socratic dialogues in workshops with, for
example, school students or financial professionals.
ACCLAIMS
• Author of The Economics of Friendship (2020)
• Member of De Jonge Akademie of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
• Laureate of the Ammodo Science Award for Fundamental Research 2023
MARLEINE VAN DER WERF
Marleine van der Werf (1985) is a filmmaker, visual artist and artistic researcher who works from a
documentary starting point. She often collaborates with experts in the fields of science,
philosophy, and technology. Her films have screened at international festivals where she has won
several awards, including the NEXT Talent Award (2018) at Playgrounds Digital Art Festival and
the Scientist Award (2019) at the Abu Dhabi Imagine Science Film Festival. In 2021, she was
awarded an interdisciplinary grant from the Sundance Institute. In 2022/2023 she participated in
the EMAP residency at Werkleitz in Halle (DE).
Filmography: The Underground Astronaut (2023), The body as an archive (2021), All We Are
(2020), The New Hospital (2018), The Prediction Machine (2018), The Free Market (2016) and
Illimited (2010).
FILM
CREDITS
Director/writer Marleine van der Werf
Cinematography Benito Strangio
Editing Saskia Kievits, NCE
Sound Recording Taco Drijfhout
Gerben Kokmeijer
Sound Design Taco Drijfhout
Music Keith Kennif
Script Consultant Eva Wijers
Grading Laurent Fluttert
Producer Ammodo/Basalt Film