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A History of the Greek City States, 700-338 B. C. (Campus ; 165) |  | Author: Raphael Sealey
Publisher: University of California Press
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
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Rating:  3 reviews
Media: Paperback
Pages: 537
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.7
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.4
ISBN: 0520031776
Dewey Decimal Number: 938
EAN: 9780520031777
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Product Description
This book introduces the reader to the serious study of Greek history, concentrating more on problems than on narrative. The topics selected have been prominent in modern research and references to important discussions of these have been provided. Outlined are controversial issues of which differing views can be defended. Mr. Sealey's preference is for interpretations which see Greek history as the interaction of personalities, rather than for those which see it as a struggle for economic classes or of abstract ideas.
Sealey assumes that the Greek cities of the archaic and classical periods did not inherit any political institutions from the Bronze Age; that the extensive invasions that brought Mycenaean civilization to an end destroyed political habits as effectively as stone palaces. Accordingly, he believes that the Greeks of the historic period were engaged in the fundamental enterprise of building organized society out of nothing.
The first chapters of this work deal with the stops taken by the early tyrants, in Sparta and Athens, toward constructing stable organs of authority and of political expression. In later chapters, interest shifts to relations that developed between the states and especially to the development of lasting alliances. Attention is given to the Peloponnesian League, to the Persian Wars, to the Delian League, and to the Second Athenian Sea League of the fourth century.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Still the Best Historical Treatment of the Archaic and Classical Greek City-States More Than 30 Years Later July 12, 2009
Peter Ramming (Arlington, VA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
It is ridiculous that anyone could rate this book less than 4 stars. (Indeed, even less than 5 stars would seem specious, in my opinion.)Sealey's history is exceptional in all ways. It is based first on all the ancient (Herodotus, Thucydides, Xenophon, Isocrates, etc.) and medieval (Byzantine, etc.) sources ("historical," literary, epigrahic, oratorical, scholia, etc.), which are then complemented by the most recent research. The writing is a model of clarity, efficiency, and verve: all historians, regardless of period of research, should write this well. The narrative moves in fascinating detail. The book includes 17 chapters (and numerous appendices), all thoroughly footnoted with ancient and modern references. The footnotes help to give a sense of the craft of the contemporary historian of Ancient Greece, and are actually fun to read. True, much new scholarship has been published since 1975, some of it surpassing its predecessors, but the main references to the scholarship on Ancient Greece from the late 19th c. to ca. 1970, are still quite solid. Names such as Bury, Jacoby, Gomme, Ehrenberg, Hammond, Hignett, Wade-Gery, Meiggs, and Pritchett will not soon grow obsolete, even if "corrected" in places. (Although Georg Busolt deserves to be added to the list.)
The maps are clear and excellent. The few B&W photos help give a sense of the landscape of Athens well prior to modern Athenian sprawl. This book is a very satisfying read. Sealey will remain one of the premier guiding lights of Ancient Greek History.
Excellent intermediate history March 23, 2009
Thomas Gemelli (cambridge, ma)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Sealey's book is a great survey of the development of the Greek city state. It provides plenty of depth, and offers a variety of scholarly opinion of the reasons for various historical events. A read this after reading Pomeroy's text book on Greek history, and found it to flesh out my understanding of the classical Greek period enormously. The majority of the book covers the development of Athens, but does spend some time on other city states and their development.
Don't read this if you want a summary of Greek civilization. It is a historical report of political events in Greek history.
 only buy if your prof forces you to November 2, 2008
Yasser Alkhalil (New York)
0 out of 6 found this review helpful
bad book it is not detailed enough although its pages go on for ages. it jumps from topic to topic and adds sub issues which it doesnt explain this story behind that story
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