Threshold of Democracy: Athens in 403 B.C. (Reacting to the Past) - Softcover

Carnes, Mark C.; Ober, Josiah

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0321333039 ISBN 13: 9780321333032

Publisher: Pearson College Div, 2005

Synopsis

Innovative and engaging, The Threshold of Democracy: Athens in 403 B.C. explores the intellectual dynamics of democracy by recreating the historical context that shaped its evolution.

 

Part of the “Reacting to the Past” series, this text consists of elaborate games in which students are assigned roles, informed by classic texts, set in particular moments of intellectual and social ferment.   Issues of the time are sorted out by a polity fractured into radical and moderate democrats, oligarchs, and Socratics, among others.

About this title

About the Author:

Josiah Ober is Constantine Mitsotakis Professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences at Stanford University, where he holds joint appointments in the departments of political science and classics. He is the author of several books on classical Athenian political and intellectual history, most recently Political Dissent in Democratic Athens. He is now working on a project about the relationship between democratic political culture and the social circulation of knowledge.

Review:

“Reacting to the Past is the most absorbing and engaging teaching I have ever done. . . . Students engage each other with a passion I have rarely seen in a classroom.”
- Elizabeth Robertson, Drake University

“Combines the student instinct for competitive gaming with the academic values of critical thinking and persuasive speaking.”
- Craig Caldwell, Appalachian State University

“It is one of the best ways I know of engaging students in great books and significant moments in history.”
- Larry Carver, University of Texas at Austin

“It's the most rewarding teaching you can do, because students will take ownership of their learning.”
- Jeffrey Hyson, Saint Joseph's University

About this edition

• Publisher: Pearson College Div
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0321333039
• ISBN 13: 9780321333032
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 3
• Number of pages: 118