The contribution of the Ancient Greeks to modern western culture is incalculable. In the worlds of art, architecture, myth, literature, and philosophy, the world we live in would be unrecognizably different without the formative influence of Ancient Greek models.
Ancient Greek
civilization was defined by the city - in Greek, the polis, from which we derive "politics". It is above all this feature of Greek civilization that has formed its most enduring legacy, spawning such key terms as aristocracy, oligarchy, tyranny and - last but by no means least - democracy.
This stimulating Very Short Introduction to Ancient Greece takes the polis as its starting point. Paul Cartledge uses the history of eleven major Greek cities to illuminate the most important and informative themes in Ancient Greek history, from the first documented use of the Greek language
around 1400 BCE, through the glories of the Classical and Hellenistic periods, to the foundation of the Byzantine empire in around CE 330. Covering everything from politics, trade, and travel to slavery, gender, religion, and philosophy, it provides the ideal concise introduction to the history and
culture of this remarkable civilization that helped give birth to the world as we know it.
1. Introduction
2. Knossos
3. Mycenae
4. Argos
5. Sparta
6. Massalia
7. Miletos
8. Athens
9. Thebes
10. Alexandria
11. Byzantium
12. Conclusion
Preface
Glossary
Timeline
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Paul Cartledge is the inaugural A.G. Leventis Professor of Greek Culture in the Faculty of classics at the University of Cambridge, and a Fellow of Clare College.
