Ryan K Balot

Greek Political Thought

• Gebundenes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

While ancient Greek thought is widely acknowledged as the major source of political ideals such as freedom and equality, ancient Greek practices including slavery, the subordination of women, and imperialism have been condemned as undemocratic and immoral. So is ancient Greek political thought still relevant today? In this provocative and wide-ranging history, Ryan Balot shows what ancient Greek political texts might mean to citizens of the twenty-first century. Balot centers his discussion on Plato and Aristotle, the great political philosophers, but also considers an array of poetic, historical, and philosophical texts in an effort to locate ancient Greek political thought in its cultural context. His account shows both how the political thought of Greece developed over time and how the characteristic Greek interest in political virtue can still shape our thinking about politics today.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Wiley
• Seitenzahl: 368
• Erscheinungstermin: 1. Februar 2006
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 235mm x 157mm x 24mm
• Gewicht: 685g
• ISBN-13: 9781405100298
• ISBN-10: 140510029X
• Artikelnr.: 22371399

Autorenporträt

Ryan K. Balot is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. The author of Greed and Injustice in Classical Athens (2001) and Greek Political Thought (Blackwell, 2006), he specializes in the history of political thought.

Inhaltsangabe

Preface and Acknowledgments.

Abbreviations.

1. Introduction: How to Do Greek Political Thought.

2. Archaic Greece and the Centrality of Justice.

3. Democratic Political Thinking at Athens.

4. Criticizing Democracy in Late Fifth-Century Athens.

5. Imperialism.

6. Fourth Century Revisions.

7. Aristotle's Political Thought.

8. Hellenistic Political Thought.

9. Epilogue: The Question of Politics.

Bibliographic Essay.

Index

Rezensionen

"Balot's book is written with admirable clarity and offers acoherent and sophisticated perspective on ancient politics for anundergraduate.... It has a thought-provoking agenda and treats theabstract issues really well." (The Classical Review, 2008)

"This comprehensive and well-informed book fills a niche.... [A]clearly argued and illuminating book. Balot achieves his statedaims with deceptive ease." (Journal of Hellenic Studies,February 2009)

"Balot's book is written with admirable clarity andoffers a coherent and sophisticated perspective on ancient politicsfor an undergraduate audience." (The Classical Review,Vol 58 No. 1, 2008)

"Balot has provided students with a carefully cleared paththrough several centuries of thought about Greek politics."(Bryn Mawr Classical Review)

"Greek Political Thought is a great starting point forany student interested in the ethical and political thought of theancient world." (Philosophy Reviews)"Balot's historical and narrative approach has the huge merit ofcombining ancient context and modern relevance. Balot eavesdrops onPlato, Aristotle and their forerunners and successors to bring usthe hot political news. His lively brand of 'virtue politics'should instruct the advanced undergraduate and graduate studentaudience at which it is aimed, as well as refresh the parts of theestablished academy that drier scholarship cannot reach. Written inan easy and attractive style, Greek Political Thought promises tostimulate a vivacious dialogue between ancient and modern politicalconcerns."
-Paul Cartledge, University of Cambridge

"This is a remarkable book, a work of exceptional erudition andinsight. It supplies a much needed survey of Greek politicalthought, but it is considerably more than an accessible andtrustworthy guide to the territory. Balot presents himself not asan antiquarian chronicler but as an active interpreter, setting outthe debates among the texts of the Greek tradition as new resourcesfor thinking about the ethics and politics of our own time. Oftencontroversial, but always scrupulous, Greek Political Thought willbe of great value to serious students at every level."
-Stephen Salkever, Bryn Mawr College