List of maps

p. xiii

Preface

p. xv

Abbreviations

p. xvi

Introduction

p. 1

Part I

Archaic and Classical Greece

1

Greek political thought: the historical context   Paul Cartledge

p. 11

1

Terminology

p. 11

2

The 'political'

p. 12

3

The polis

p. 17

4

Political theory

p. 20

The Beginnings

2

Poets, lawgivers, and the beginnings of political reflection in archaic Greece   Kurt A. Raaflaub

p. 23

1

Polis and political thinking

p. 23

2

Archaic poetry and political thinking

p. 26

3

Homer

p. 27

4

Hesiod

p. 34

5

Tyrtaeus to Theognis

p. 37

6

Solon

p. 39

7

Archaic lawgivers

p. 42

8

Early philosophers

p. 48

9

Near Eastern antecedents and influences

p. 50

10

Conclusion: the beginnings of political thinking in Archaic Greece

p. 57

3

Greek drama and political theory   Simon Goldhill

p. 60

1

The institution of the theatre

p. 61

2

Political themes of tragic writing

p. 65

3

The Oresteia

p. 74

4

Antigone

p. 81

5

Comedy

p. 84

6

Conclusion

p. 87

4

Herodotus, Thucydides and the sophists   Richard Winton

p. 89

1

The sophists

p. 89

2

Herodotus

p. 101

3

Thucydides

p. 111

5

Democritus   C. C. W. Taylor

p. 122

6

The orators   Josian Ober

p. 130

1

Introduction

p. 130

2

Historical background and institutional context

p. 131

3

The corpus of orations by Athenian orators

p. 134

4

Popular wisdom and the problem of erroneous public decisions

p. 135

7

Xenophon and Isocrates   V. J. Gray

p. 142

1

Democracy

p. 143

2

Rulership

p. 146

3

Sparta

p. 151

4

Panhellenism

p. 154

Socrates and Plato

8

Socrates and Plato: an introduction   Melissa Lane

p. 155

1

Approaches to Platonic interpretation

p. 155

2

The chronology of Plato's dialogues

p. 157

3

The Socratic problem revisited

p. 160

4

The death of Socrates

p. 162

9

Socrates   Terry Penner

p. 164

1

The discontinuity between 'Socratic' intellectualism and 'mature Platonic' irrationalism about human behaviour

p. 165

2

Some continuities between 'Socratic' and 'mature Platonic' thought: (i) the centrality of the question of the teaching of virtue, and (ii) the sciences and idealization

p. 171

3

A further continuity between the 'Socratic' dialogues and the middle and late dialogues: (iii) the sciences and the good

p. 174

4

Socrates' response to the democratic political theory of the teaching of virtue which Protagoras propounds in the Protagoras

p. 179

5

The political philosophy of Plato's Apology and Crito and another continuity between Socrates and the mature Plato: (iv) the attitude towards practical politics

p. 182

6

Conclusion

p. 189

10

Approaching the Republic   Malcolm Schofield

p. 190

1

Introduction

p. 190

2

Gorgias and Menexenus

p. 192

3

Republic: a sketch

p. 199

4

The problem

p. 203

5

The response: (i) a first model

p. 207

6

The response: (ii) a causal story

p. 213

7

The digression: (i) unity and the good city

p. 217

8

The digression: (ii) philosopher rulers

p. 224

9

The response: (iii) justice and the city within

p. 228

11

The Politicus and other dialogues   Christopher Rowe

p. 233

1

The definition of the 'statesman' in the Politicus

p. 234

2

The myth of the Politicus and other political myths

p. 239

3

King or law?

p. 244

4

The statesman as director and weaver

p. 251

5

The Politicus, the Timaeus-Critias, and the Laws

p. 254

12

The Laws   Andre Laks

p. 258

1

A singular work

p. 258

2

The structure and content of the Laws

p. 260

3

Three models for interpreting the Laws: completion, revision, implementation

p. 267

4

Man and god: the anthropology of the Laws

p. 275

5

Political institutions

p. 278

6

The forms of political speech: what is a preamble?

p. 285

7

Conclusion

p. 291

13

Plato and practical politics   Malcolm Schofield

p. 293

14

Cleitophon and Minos   Christopher Rowe

p. 303

Aristotle

15

Aristotle: an introduction   Malcolm Schofield

p. 310

1

Politics, the legislator, and the structure of the Politics

p. 310

2

Sitz im Leben

p. 315

3

Aristotle's analytical models

p. 318

16

Naturalism   Fred D. Miller, Jr

p. 321

1

'Nature' in Aristotle's natural philosophy

p. 322

2

The naturalness of the polis

p. 325

3

The naturalness of the household

p. 332

4

Nature and education

p. 338

17

Justice and the polis   Jean Roberts

p. 344

1

Natural and conventional justice

p. 345

2

Justice as a virtue of individuals

p. 350

3

Individuals as citizens

p. 353

4

Just individuals and just citizens

p. 355

5

Justice and the distribution of power in the city

p. 360

18

Aristotelian constitutions   Christopher Rowe

p. 366

1

Introduction: the nature of the Politics

p. 366

2

Aristotle and Plato

p. 368

3

Kingship, aristocracy and polity

p. 371

4

Mixed and 'deviant' constitutions

p. 378

5

'Polity'

p. 384

6

The absolutely best constitution

p. 386

7

The ideal and the actual

p. 387

19

The Peripatos after Aristotle   Christopher Rowe

p. 390

1

The fate of Aristotle's writings

p. 390

2

Aristotle's successors in the Peripatos

p. 391

Part II

The Hellenistic and Roman Worlds

20

Introduction: the Hellenistic and Roman periods   Peter Garnsey

p. 401

21

The Cynics   John Moles

p. 415

1

The problem of evidence

p. 415

2

Reconstructing Cynicism

p. 417

3

The Cynics and politics

p. 423

4

Significance and influence

p. 432

22

Epicurean and Stoic political thought   Malcolm Schofield

p. 435

1

Introduction

p. 435

2

Epicureanism

p. 437

3

Zeno's Republic

p. 443

4

Later Hellenistic Stoicism

p. 446

5

Roman epilogue

p. 453

23

Kings and constitutions: Hellenistic theories   David E. Hahm

p. 457

1

Kingship theories

p. 458

2

Constitutional theory

p. 464

24

Cicero   E. M. Atkins

p. 477

1

Introduction

p. 477

2

The historical background

p. 478

3

The aristocratic code

p. 481

4

Cicero's early career

p. 483

5

The writings of the fifties

p. 487

6

The civil war and its aftermath

p. 502

7

Philosophy for Romans

p. 503

8

Conclusion

p. 514

25

Reflections of Roman political thought in Latin historical writing   Thomas Wiedemann

p. 517

26

Seneca and Pliny   Miriam Griffin

p. 532

1

De Clementia

p. 535

2

Seneca's eulogies and Pliny's Panegyricus

p. 543

3

De Beneficiis

p. 545

4

Pliny's correspondence

p. 551

5

Seneca on public versus private life

p. 555

6

Conclusion

p. 558

27

Platonism and Pythagoreanism in the early empire   Bruno Centrone

p. 559

1

Preliminary considerations

p. 559

2

Philo of Alexandria

p. 561

3

Pseudo-Pythagorean literature

p. 567

4

Plutarch

p. 575

5

Conclusions

p. 583

28

Josephus   Tessa Rajak

p. 585

1

The place of political thought in Josephus' writings

p. 585

2

Greek-Jewish thought

p. 586

3

Leading ideas in Josephus

p. 587

29

Stoic writers of the imperial era   Christopher Gill

p. 597

1

Introduction

p. 597

2

Musonius Rufus

p. 601

3

Dio

p. 603

4

Epictetus

p. 607

5

Marcus Aurelius

p. 611

30

The jurists   David Johnston

p. 616

1

Introduction

p. 616

2

General theory of law

p. 618

3

Public law and private law

p. 625

4

Conclusions

p. 632

31

Christianity   Frances Young

p. 635

1

A political movement?

p. 635

2

Political attitudes in the New Testament

p. 637

3

Developments under persecution

p. 640

4

The response to Constantine

p. 650

5

The separation of spheres

p. 657

Epilogue

p. 661

1

Julian and Themistius

p. 661

2

Augustine

p. 665

3

Conclusion

p. 671

Bibliographies

I

Archaic and Classical Greece

1

The beginnings (Introduction and chs. 1-7)

p. 672

2

Socrates, Plato and Aristotle (chs. 8-19)

p. 698

II

The Hellenistic and Roman Worlds (chs. 20-31 and Epilogue)

p. 709

Index

p. 729

This book, first published in 2000, is a general and comprehensive treatment of the political thought of ancient Greece and Rome. It begins with Homer and ends in late antiquity with Christian and pagan reflections on divine and human order. In between come studies of Plato, Aristotle and a host of other major and minor thinkers - poets, historians, philosophers - whose individuality is brought out by extensive quotation. The international team of distinguished scholars assembled by the editors includes historians of law, politics, culture and religion, and also philosophers. Some chapters focus mostly on the ancient context of the ideas they are examining, while others explore these ideas as systems of thought which resonate with modern or perennial concerns. This clearly written volume will long remain an accessible and authoritative guide to Greek and Roman thinking about government and community.