Rating: 
Summary: Balance this book with other viewpoints
Review: This superficially attractive book should be approached carefully. The author makes several strong, yet unsupported statements in an attempt to minimize the effect of Classical Greece on western civilization. It is refreshing to see a different viewpoint. However, the book has no references; only further readings. Had I not been exposed to other viewpoints before reading this book, I would walk away thinking the Athenian contribution to Western philosophy, arts, architecture, letters, etc., was rather inconsequential and evolutionary in nature (rather than revolutionary as it is customarily accepted). There is nothing wrong with a new point of view. But, if it is radical, it should be supported (via references, etc.) -- otherwise, it is suspect.An example of this is the statement (p. 93) that an exquisite ivory carving of Philip II "a little over three centimetres in height ... belies Demosthenes' claim that the Macedonians were 'barbarians'". In the same paragraph we hear that Philip employed many Greeks at his court, including Aristotle. Could it be possible that the barbarian conqueror, Phillip, surrounded himself with the beauty of the world he conquered? Readers exposed to the beauty of Classical Greek thought and art are left wondering about the motives (or background) of this author who chooses to focus on the political, military, and perhaps greedy aspects of Greek civilization, while completely ignoring its more noble contributions to Western thought. Perhaps the book balances the opposite tendency, i.e., to focus on the marvels of Greek Arts, and disregard the support environment that provided the safety and affluence for Greek Arts to flourish. The author only mentions Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle by name, but without any statement that might suggest he has studied their works (which I am sure he has, but ...). A search on the web reveals the author is mainly an Egyptologist. This explains his belief that the Greeks were not initiators of Western thought, but rather mere continuators of the Egyptian arts and sciences, and "deeply influenced in all [their historical and cultural] phases by the other civilizations of the eastern Mediterranean and western Asia." While it is true that Greek culture was influenced by other cultures of the region, it is suspect to underplay the influence of Greek innovation on Democratic thought and other noble ideals of western society. Again, balance this book with other viewpoints and do study some Plato (among others), while you are at it.
Rating:
Summary: Balance this book with other viewpoints
Review: This superficially attractive book should be approached carefully. The author makes several strong, yet unsupported statements in an attempt to minimize the effect of Classical Greece on western civilization. It is refreshing to see a different viewpoint. However, the book has no references; only further readings. Had I not been exposed to other viewpoints before reading this book, I would walk away thinking the Athenian contribution to Western philosophy, arts, architecture, letters, etc., was rather inconsequential and evolutionary in nature (rather than revolutionary as it is customarily accepted). There is nothing wrong with a new point of view. But, if it is radical, it should be supported (via references, etc.) -- otherwise, it is suspect. An example of this is the statement (p. 93) that an exquisite ivory carving of Philip II "a little over three centimetres in height ... belies Demosthenes' claim that the Macedonians were 'barbarians'". In the same paragraph we hear that Philip employed many Greeks at his court, including Aristotle. Could it be possible that the barbarian conqueror, Phillip, surrounded himself with the beauty of the world he conquered? Readers exposed to the beauty of Classical Greek thought and art are left wondering about the motives (or background) of this author who chooses to focus on the political, military, and perhaps greedy aspects of Greek civilization, while completely ignoring its more noble contributions to Western thought. Perhaps the book balances the opposite tendency, i.e., to focus on the marvels of Greek Arts, and disregard the support environment that provided the safety and affluence for Greek Arts to flourish. The author only mentions Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle by name, but without any statement that might suggest he has studied their works (which I am sure he has, but ...). A search on the web reveals the author is mainly an Egyptologist. This explains his belief that the Greeks were not initiators of Western thought, but rather mere continuators of the Egyptian arts and sciences, and "deeply influenced in all [their historical and cultural] phases by the other civilizations of the eastern Mediterranean and western Asia." While it is true that Greek culture was influenced by other cultures of the region, it is suspect to underplay the influence of Greek innovation on Democratic thought and other noble ideals of western society. Again, balance this book with other viewpoints and do study some Plato (among others), while you are at it.
Rating:
Summary: Useful but lacking structure and references
Review: What I was expecting from this book was a condensed, informative, and illustrated short story of the Greek civilization. The book does it, and remarkably well at times. However, it is poorly referenced and assumes the reader knows already a lot about Greek history It was not my case, and so it was very annoying to see references to concepts such as "linear 1 writing", without any explanation. The same happens with some parts of the maps and geography concepts. Sometimes, places such as the Peloponnesos peninsula are referred to in the text but not apparent in the maps. Again, maybe unnecessary for people who know them, but annoying for those who don't. In brief, it's a very good book that could easily deserve 5 stars after an improved editorial revision.
|
