Politics in the Ancient World

Politics in the Ancient World PDF

Author: Moses I. Finley

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 1983-07-07

Total Pages: 164

ISBN-13: 9780521275705

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Sir Moses Finley explores politics in the city states of Greece and republican Rome and their impact on our understanding of the ancient world.

Politics and Society in Ancient Greece

Politics and Society in Ancient Greece PDF

Author: Nicholas F. Jones

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2008-02-28

Total Pages: 185

ISBN-13: 0313054118

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Western democracies often trace their political roots back to Ancient Greece. While politics today may seem the dusty domain of lawmakers and pundits, in the classical era virtually no aspect of life was beyond its reach. Political life was not limited to acts of a legislature, magistrates, and the courts but routinely included the activities of social clubs, the patronage system, and expression through literature, art, and architecture. Through these varied means, even non-enfranchised groups (such as women and non-citizens) gained entry into a wider democratic process. Beyond the citizen world of traditional politics, there existed multiple layers of Greek political life-reflecting many aspects of our own modern political landscape. Religious cults served as venues for female office-holders; private clubs and drinking parties served significant social functions. Popular athletes capitalized on their fame to run for elected office. Military veterans struggled to bring back the good old days much to the dismay of the forward-thinking ambitions of naive twenty-somethings. Liberals and conservatives of all classes battled over important issues of the day. Scandal and intrigue made or ended many a political career. Taken collectively, these aspects of political life serve as a lens for viewing the whole of Greek civilization in some of its characteristic and distinctive dimensions.

Revolutions: a Very Short Introduction

Revolutions: a Very Short Introduction PDF

Author: Jack A. Goldstone

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2023

Total Pages: 177

ISBN-13: 0197666302

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"In the 20th and 21st century revolutions have become more urban, often less violent, but also more frequent and more transformative of the international order. Whether it is the revolutions against Communism in Eastern Europe and the USSR; the "color revolutions" across Asia, Europe and North Africa; or the religious revolutions in Iran, Afghanistan, and Syria; today's revolutions are quite different from those of the past. Modern theories of revolution have therefore replaced the older class-based theories with more varied, dynamic, and contingent models of social and political change. This new edition updates the history of revolutions, from Classical Greece and Rome to the Revolution of Dignity in the Ukraine, with attention to the changing types and outcomes of revolutionary struggles. It also presents the latest advances in the theory of revolutions, including the issues of revolutionary waves, revolutionary leadership, international influences, and the likelihood of revolutions to come. This volume provides a brief but comprehensive introduction to the nature of revolutions and their role in global history"--

Politics in the Roman Republic

Politics in the Roman Republic PDF

Author: Henrik Mouritsen

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2017-03-02

Total Pages: 215

ISBN-13: 1107031885

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A very readable introduction exploring much-contested issues and debates, and providing an original synthesis of this important topic.

Government in the Ancient World

Government in the Ancient World PDF

Author: Hazel Richardson

Publisher: Life in the Ancient World

Published: 2011-08

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780778717348

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Titles in this Series Arts and Culture in the Ancient, World Communication in the Ancient World Government in the Ancient World Religion in the Ancient World Technology in the Ancient World Trade and Commence in the Ancient World Book jacket.

The Greek Discovery of Politics

The Greek Discovery of Politics PDF

Author: Christian Meier

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Published: 1990

Total Pages: 324

ISBN-13: 9780674362321

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Why the Greeks? How did it happen that these people--out of all Mediterranean societies--developed democratic systems of government? The outstanding German historian of the ancient world, Christian Meier, reconstructs the process of political thinking in Greek culture that led to democracy. He demonstrates that the civic identity of the Athenians was a direct precondition for the practical reality of this form of government. Meier shows how the structure of Greek communal life gave individuals a civic role and discusses a crucial reform that institutionalized the idea of equality before the law. In Greek drama--specifically Aeschylus' Oresteia--he finds reflections of the ascendancy of civil law and of a politicizing of life in the city-state. He examines the role of the leader as well as citizen participation in Athenian democracy and describes an ancient equivalent of the idea of social progress. He also contrasts the fifth-century Greek political world with today's world, drawing revealing comparisons. The Greek Discovery of Politics is important reading for ancient historians, classicists, political scientists, and anyone interested in the history of political thought or in the culture of ancient Greece.

Myth and Politics in Ancient Near Eastern Historiography

Myth and Politics in Ancient Near Eastern Historiography PDF

Author: Mario Liverani

Publisher: Cornell University Press

Published: 2007-06

Total Pages: 234

ISBN-13: 9780801473586

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The essays included in this volume analyze important historical texts from various regions of the Ancient Near East. The distinguished Italian historian Mario Liverani suggests that these historiographical texts were of a "true" historical nature and that their literary forms achieved their intended results. Liverani focuses on two central themes in these texts: myth and politics.There is a close connection, Liverani finds, between the writing of history and the validation of political order and political action. History defines the correct role and behavior of political leaders, especially when they do not possess the validation provided by tradition. Historical texts, he discovers, are more often the tools for supporting change than for supporting stability.Liverani demonstrates that history writing in the Ancient Near East made frequent use of mythical patterns, wisdom motifs, and literary themes in order to fulfill its audience's cultural expectations. The resulting nonhistorical literary forms can mislead interpretation, but an analysis of these forms allows the texts' sociopolitical and communicative frameworks to emerge.