Description
Book SynopsisIn this book, Mary P. Nichols argues for the centrality of the idea of freedom in Thucydides' thought.
Trade ReviewMary Nichols has reinvigorated the Straussian tradition of Thucydidean exegesis and the detailed exploration of the relationship between the city and man, mapping contemporary concerns about the freedom of individuals to a narrative about two cities, their conflict and conflicting values.
-- Carol Atack * POLIS, The Journal for Ancient Greek Political Thought *
Alternately beautiful and enigmatic, Nichols’ Thucydides and the Pursuit of Freedom explores the themes of freedom and statesmanship in Thucydides’ History.... her explorations of this topic have paved the way for future work on it. For this reason among others, the book merits a wide readership among classicists and political theorists.
* JOURNAL OF HELLENIC STUDIES *
The obvious audience for this book is for those who read Tyucydides in the tradition so dependent on Strauss, who can see how the current discussion of Thucydides sees limits to the depiction of Thucydides as an ideologically pure realist. However, it is also important for other students of Thucydides to be aware of the concepts and values that the political science community applies in their reading of this endlessly challenging author.
-- Michael Shaw * Classical Journal *
[Readers] will not be disappointed if they are looking for a fresh, if selective, exegesis of Thucydides' History.... Nichols' intense scrutiny of particular forms of diction, literary parallels and contrasts, and characterization often leads to provocative and novel ideas.... Even experienced readers will be provoked and enlightened by Nichols' erudite study.
-- Ryan Balot, University of Toronto * The Philosophical Quarterly *
Table of ContentsIntroduction: Thucydides as Historian1. Periclean Athens and an Image of Freedom2. Athenian Freedom in the Balance: Mytilene and Plataea3. Sparta, Brasidas, and the Liberation of Hellas4. Sicily, Alcibiades, and the Liberation of Eros5. Homecoming and FreedomConclusion: Thucydides, an AthenianBibliography
Index
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