Description
Book SynopsisThe Classical Athenians were the first to articulate and implement the notion that ordinary citizens of no particular affluence or education could make responsible political decisions. This book charts responses to Athenian democracy from Athens itself through the twentieth century, exploring a debate that touches upon historiography, and ethics.
Trade Review"Roberts has given us an excellent study of [the Athenian] legacy...Athens on Trial deserves praise both for its conception and its execution."--Eric W. Robinson, Bryn Mawr Classical Review "A first-rate intellectual and cultural history."--Stephen Goode, The Washington Times "Roberts ... writes with learning, wit, acerbity, profundity, and engagement on the vicissitudes of the idea [of democracy] in its supposedly original Athenian form."--Paul Cartledge, New Statesman & Society
Table of ContentsPreface and AcknowledgmentsAbbreviationsCh. 1Introduction3Pt. 1Classical Greece23Ch. 2The Athenian Experiment25Ch. 3The First Attacks on Athenian Democracy48Ch. 4Democracy and the Philosophers71Pt. 2Playing With the Past93Ch. 5Roman Adaptations97Ch. 6Recovering the Greeks119Ch. 7Monarchists and Republicans137Ch. 8The Debate over Athens and Sparta156Ch. 9Athenian Democracy in the Age of Revolutions175Ch. 10A Shift in the Sands208Pt. 3Modern Transformations227Ch. 11The Turning of the Tide229Ch. 12Athenians and Others256Ch. 13Epilogue: The Old and the New291Notes315Selected Bibliography379Index393
