Telling, Turning Moments in the Classical Political World

by Jan H. Blits

Overview

Turning, Telling Moments in the Classical Political World examines developments in the classical political world which are both turning and telling moments. All the moments—from Theseus's founding of Athens to Augustus's establishment of the Principate—possess the double character of being turning points and revealing fundamental aspects of the ancient political world.
While most books on ancient history are chiefly concerned with questions of literary sources and historical accuracy, this book deals with the significance of the facts and reports themselves. Blits treats the ancient histories as works of reflection rather than works of research. Instead of focusing on whether, or how, the ancient historians meet the professional standards of present-day historiography, Blits reveals the way they themselves understand-and intend us to understand-the ancient world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780739164495
Publisher:	Lexington Books
Publication date:	12/28/2010
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Jan H. Blits is professor of political science and international relations at the University of Delaware and author of New Heaven, New Earth: Shakespeare's Antony and CleopatraI, Spirit, Soul, and City: Shakespeare's Coriolanus, The Soul of Athens: Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Deadly Thought: Hamlet and the Human Soul, The Insufficiency of Virtue: Macbeth and the Natural Order, The End of the Ancient Republic: Essays on Julius Caesar, and The American University: Problems, Prospects, and Trends.

Table of Contents

Foreword 1

Chapter 1 Athens and Rome: Plutarch's Theseus and Romulus 9

Chapter 2 Redeeming Lost Honor: Shakespeare's Rape of Lucrece 27

Chapter 3 The End of the Noble 43

Chapter 4 No Middle Way, No Second Way: Rome and the Caudine Forks 67

Chapter 5 The Politics of Authority and Rhetoric in Republican Rome 89

Chapter 6 Political Murder in Rome 109

Chapter 7 Power without Office, Office without Power: Augustus's Principate 131

Afterword: Greece versus Rome 149

Appendix 161

Index 169

About the Author 177

Editorial Reviews

This engrossing book succeeds in its plan of presentation as well as in its interpretative vision. Selected events of Greek and Roman antiquity are presented in terms of 'turning moments,' each flushed out with memorable detail and each resonating with crucial human and political significance. The thesis that Athens and Rome are mutually illuminating opposites, related as poetry to prose, adds a unifying tenor. This is a thoughtfulhistory.

Eva Brann

This engrossing book succeeds in its plan of presentation as well as in its interpretative vision. Selected events of Greek and Roman antiquity are presented in terms of 'turning moments, ' each flushed out with memorable detail and each resonating with crucial human and political significance. The thesis that Athens and Rome are mutually illuminating opposites, related as poetry to prose, adds a unifying tenor. This is a thoughtfulhistory.--Eva Brann, St. John's College, Annapolis

From the Publisher