Confronting the Classics: Traditions, Adventures and Innovations - Hardcover

Beard, Mary

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1781250480 ISBN 13: 9781781250488

Publisher: Profile Books, 2013

Synopsis

Comprising updated versions of 31 essays published over the past two decades, this volume takes the reader on 'a provocative tour of what is happening now in Classics'. Professor Beard reassesses old answers in scholarly debates concerning Greco-Roman antiquity; offers fresh interpretations of heroes and antiheroes, from the Greek poet Sappho to the emperor Hadrian; explores the evidence for ordinary Romans' worries and ambitions; and asks what our modern responses to the ancient world say about us.

About this title

About the Author

A professor of classics at Cambridge University, Mary Beard is the author of the best-selling The Fires of Vesuvius and the National Book Critics Circle Award–nominated Confronting the Classics. A popular blogger and television personality, Beard gave the Mellon Lectures at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, and is a regular contributor to the New York Review of Books. She lives in England.

Review

“Engaging...impressive... Through her lively discussion of modern scholarship, Ms. Beard succeeds in her goal of proving that study of the Classics is “still a ‘work in progress’ not ‘done and dusted’."”
- The Economist

“These reviews are ideal for providing a basic understanding of classical studies, as they not only pinpoint the strengths and weaknesses of the books she reviews but also elucidate the sometimes tricky nuances of current approaches in the field.... Not to be missed by fans of Beard, this will also appeal to readers generally interested in classical studies.”
- Library Journal

“Many of us studied classics not only to read what was written in Latin, but also because poets, writers, and thinkers had blazed a brilliant trail. Beard conveys in her survey of the subject and the people who study it the excitement and romance of that tradition. For someone who has argued vehemently against the need to be glamorous, she makes the study of classics irresistibly attractive.”
- A.E. Stallings, American Scholar

“With such a champion as Beard to debunk and popularise, the future of the study of classics is assured.”
- Daily Telegraph (UK)

“Beard’s essays in this volume range from humor in ancient Greece to the reputation of the emperor Caligula to the restoration of Roman sculpture. She writes with grace and wit on a vast array of subjects, and she has a novelist’s gift for selecting odd and revealing details.”
- Nick Romeo, The Daily Beast

Edition details

• Publisher: Profile Books
• Publication date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1781250480
• ISBN 13: 9781781250488
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 384