Volume 38, Number 9 · May 16, 1991
Decadence Revisited
By Jasper Griffin
Alexander to Actium: The Historical Evolution of the Hellenistic Age
by Peter Green
University of California Press, 970 pp., $65.00
The Hellenistic Aesthetic
by Barbara Hughes Fowler
University of Wisconsin Press, 213 pp., $11.50 (paper)
Hellenistic Poetry: An Anthology
selected and translated by Barbara Hughes Fowler
University of Wisconsin Press, 357 pp., $12.95 (paper)
Hellenism in Late Antiquity
by G.W. Bowersock
University of Michigan Press, 109 pp., $24.95
Greek Sculpture
by Andrew Stewart
Yale University Press, Vol. 2 (plates), unpaginated pp., boxed set, $95.00
When we think of Ancient Greece and Rome, cradle of our civilization and most accessible of ancient societies, what is it that comes to mind? Two periods dominate the idea of classical antiquity for moderns: on the one hand the democracy of Athens in the fifth century BC, innovative and dynamic, and on the other the grandiose and apparently unchanging empire of Rome in the early centuries of our era. Between those two periods lies a gap of four centuries, which may seem less attractive because of the enormous complexity of their political history, with wars, alliances, revolutions, conquests, and the rise and fall of nations. They also can look depressing because so much that happened seems not to lead anywhere, in the sense of forming part of the great historical movements which interest the selective eye of posterity.
Review, 7730 words
To read the full text of this piece, please choose one of the following options:
|
If you are already a subscriber to the Review's electronic edition, please sign in: |
To subscribe to the electronic edition, please press the button below. |
To purchase access to this article for $3, please press the button below. |