3 Review(s)

Who were the Classical Greeks? This book provides an original and challenging answer by exploring how Greeks (adult, male, citizen) defined themselves in opposition to a whole series of others (non-Greeks, women, slaves, non-citizens, and gods) as presented by supposedly objective historians of the time such as Herodotus, Thucydides, and Xenophon. Cartledge looks at the achievements and legacy of the Greeks - history, democracy, philosophy and theatre - and the mental and material contexts of these inventions which are often deeply alien to our own way of thinking and acting. This new edition contains an updated bibliography, a new chapter entitled "Entr'acte: Others in Images and Images of Others," and a new afterword. Salient Features Paul Cartledge is 'one of the most theoretically alert, widely read and prolific of contemporary ancient historians' (TLS) A short, lively introduction to the Greeks and their legacy Explores the fascinating development of 'the other' through the examination of 'the Greek' as adult, male, citizen, and 'non-Greek' as woman, non-citizen, slave. Traces the development of the basic concepts of democracy, theatre, philosophy, and history in Greece. Looks beyond the myths, to the mental and material achievements of the Greeks New addendum to Chapter 2, additional bibliography, and new Afterword