The Great Sophists in Periclean Athens

by Jacqueline de Romilly, Janet Lloyd

Overview

The arrival of the Sophists in Athens in the middle of the fifth century B.C. was a major intellectual event, for they brought with them a new method of teaching founded on rhetoric and bold doctrines which broke away from tradition. In this book de Romilly investigates the reasons for the initial success of the Sophists and the reaction against them, in the context of the culture and civilization of classical Athens.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198238072
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	09/10/1998
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	276
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Jacqueline de Romilly is a Member of the French Academy and was, until her retirement in 1983, Professor of Greek Language and Literature at the Collège de France. She was the first woman Professor at the Collège, and the first woman elected to the Académie des Inscriptions et des Belles-Lettres.

Table of Contents

1. The Rise and Success of the Sophists2. A New Teaching3. Rhetorical Education4. The Doctrines of the Sophists: A Tabula Rasa5. The Dangers of the Tabula Rasa: Immoralism6. Reconstruction on the Basis of the Tabula Rasa7. Recovering the Virtues8. PoliticsConclusion and AfterthoughtsBibliographical NotesChronological TableIndexSupplementary ReferencesTranslator's Note on Greek and Latin Texts

Editorial Reviews

"A lively and engaging introduction to the Sophistic movement....De Romilly deserves much credit for bringing a remarkable immediacy to the subject of the Sophists and their legacy. Classicists and the general public should appreciate this new and controversial assessment of the Sophistic movement."—Bryn Mawr Classical Review

"Offers a brilliant introduction to the Sophists of fifth-century Athens and a major reinterpretation of the goals and effects of their thought....Engagingly written, this eminently accessible account deserves lasting popularity."—Choice

"Exquisite nuance informs both writing and translation in this work, which should complement libraries in classical, philosophy, political science, and religion."—Religious Studies Review

"Uniting the skills of the philologist with those of the philosopher, de Romilly makes an important contribution to the creation of thinking about the thinking of goodness, justice, truth, etc., in the history of ideas."—Rhetoric Review

From the Publisher