The Greek City States: A Source Book
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Book Overview
Political activity and political thinking began in the cities and other states of ancient Greece, and terms such as tyranny, aristocracy, oligarchy, democracy and politics itself are Greek words for concepts first discussed in Greece. Rhodes presents in translation a selection of texts illustrating the formal mechanisms and informal workings of the Greek states in all their variety. From the states described by Homer out of which the classical Greeks believed their states had developed, through the archaic period which saw the rise and fall of tyrants and the gradual broadening of citizen bodies, to the classical period of the fifth and fourth centuries, Rhodes also looks beyond that to the Hellenistic and Roman periods in which the Greeks tried to preserve their way of life in a world of great powers. For this second edition the book has been thoroughly revised and three new chapters added.
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0521615569
ISBN13:9780521615563
Release Date:April 2007
Publisher:Cambridge University Press
Length:356 Pages
Weight:1.30 lbs.
Dimensions:1.0" x 5.9" x 8.9"
Customer Reviews
1 rating
somewhat disjointed read due to its inherent nature
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 17 years ago
The book is not a recount of the Pelopennesian Wars. Rather, it gives background into the different societies of the Greek cities. Their economic structures, forms of government, religions and social lives. The text is explicitly a source book. So there is no (or at least very little) overarching narrative. Instead, the reader is treated to excerpts, typically of a few paragraphs, translated from original documents, describing various aspects of the cities. A result is a disjointed read, if you try or want to read it cover to cover. Perhaps best used as a reference.
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