Description
Book Synopsis This book examines the writings of four ancient Greeks-Homer, Thucydides, Euripides, and Aristophanes. Each of these four individuals represents a different approach toward the human condition, ranging from the heroic and tragic to the comic and absurd. This book focuses on how the human condition can best be understood within the framework of these four perspectives by examining the major contributions of these Greek writers, whether in the form of epic (Homer''s Iliad), history (Thucydides'' History of the Peloponnesian War), or drama (the plays of Euripides and Aristophanes). These various perceptions of Greek thought illuminate our understanding of what it means to be fully human. By focusing on the concepts of the heroic, tragic, comic, and absurd, we can see how these ancient Greek authors still provide key insights for us today as they clarify those timeless features that define the human condition.
Table of Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Preface
- Introduction
- One—A Humanities Perspective of the Human Condition
- Two—Rediscovering the Ancient Greeks in the Modern World
- Three—Four Greek Perspectives of the Human Condition
- Four—War and the Heroic Worldview: Homer's Iliad
- Five—History as Tragic: Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War
- Six—Euripides and the Absurd: Iphigenia at Aulis and The Bacchae
- Seven—Aristophanes' Comic Vision: The Clouds and Lysistrata
- Eight—Perceiving the Humanities Through Greek Eyes
- Chapter Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
