Early Greece: Second Edition

By Oswyn Murray

Book Overview

Within the space of three centuries leading up to the great Persian invasion of 480 BC, Greece was transformed from a simple peasant society into a sophisticated civilization that dominated the shores of the Mediterranean from Spain to Syria and from the Crimea to Egypt--a culture whose achievements in the fields of art, science, philosophy, and politics were to establish the canons of the the Western world.

Oswyn Murray places this remarkable development in the context of Mediterranean civilization. He shows how contact with the East catalyzed the transformation of art and religion, analyzes the invention of the alphabet and the conceptual changes it brought, describes the expansions of Greece in trade and colonization, and investigates the relationship between military technology and political progress in the overthrow of aristocratic governments.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 067422132X
• ISBN13: 9780674221321
• Release Date: January 1993
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Length: 353 Pages
• Weight: 0.92 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.5" x 7.5"

Customer Reviews

Brilliant Synthesis

A wonderful synthesis, learned but not wordy, of the kind that only a very senior historian could write. Effectively conveys his views as to many complicated problems of early Greece, while giving due regard to the positions of others.

A great introduction to the origins of the West

I found "Early Greece" to be a great book, that really helps the reader to understand the context of the development of the classical Greek civilisation, how it was influenced by the surrounding cultures, but at the same time started its unique path.The writer does an excellant job of keeping us engaged in his work. I found it to be an easy and enjoyable read. I was challenged by the writer's work to look beyond the accepted wisdom of our understanding of how much we have been influenced by the Greeks, especially his analysis of the clash between Greek and Asian cultures, in his understanding of the Persian wars.Great book!