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Exile, Ostracism, and Democracy : The Politics of Expulsion in Ancient Greece / Sara Forsdyke.

By: Material type: TextTextPublisher: Princeton, NJ : Princeton University Press, [2009]Copyright date: ©2006Edition: Course BookDescription: 1 online resourceContent type:
Media type:
Carrier type:
ISBN:
  • 9780691119755
  • 9781400826865
Subject(s): DDC classification:
  • 364.6/8
LOC classification:
  • JC75.E9F67 2005
Other classification:
  • online - DeGruyter
Online resources: Available additional physical forms:
  • Issued also in print.
Contents:
Frontmatter -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Chronology -- Abbreviations and Conventions -- Introduction. Problems, Methods, Concepts -- Chapter One. Setting The Stage -- Chapter Two. The Politics of Exile and the Crisis of the Archaic Polis -- Chapter Three. From Exile to Ostracism -- Chapter Four. Ostracism and Exile in Democratic Athens -- Chapter Five. Exile and Empire -- Chapter Six. Exile in the Greek Mythical and Historical Imagination -- Conclusion -- Appendix One. The Date of the Athenian Law of Ostracism -- Appendix Two. Ostracism Outside Athens -- Appendix Three. Exile in Spartan Myth and History -- Bibliography -- Index Locorum -- General Index
Summary: This book explores the cultural and political significance of ostracism in democratic Athens. In contrast to previous interpretations, Sara Forsdyke argues that ostracism was primarily a symbolic institution whose meaning for the Athenians was determined both by past experiences of exile and by its role as a context for the ongoing negotiation of democratic values. The first part of the book demonstrates the strong connection between exile and political power in archaic Greece. In Athens and elsewhere, elites seized power by expelling their rivals. Violent intra-elite conflict of this sort was a highly unstable form of "politics that was only temporarily checked by various attempts at elite self-regulation. A lasting solution to the problem of exile was found only in the late sixth century during a particularly intense series of violent expulsions. At this time, the Athenian people rose up and seized simultaneously control over decisions of exile and political power. The close connection between political power and the power of expulsion explains why ostracism was a central part of the democratic reforms. Forsdyke shows how ostracism functioned both as a symbol of democratic power and as a key term in the ideological justification of democratic rule. Crucial to the author's interpretation is the recognition that ostracism was both a remarkably mild form of exile and one that was infrequently used. By analyzing the representation of exile in Athenian imperial decrees, in the works of Herodotus, Thucydides, Plato, Aristotle, and in tragedy and oratory, Forsdyke shows how exile served as an important term in the debate about the best form of rule.
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number URL Status Notes Barcode
eBook eBook Biblioteca "Angelicum" Pont. Univ. S.Tommaso d'Aquino Nuvola online online - DeGruyter (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Online access Not for loan (Accesso limitato) Accesso per gli utenti autorizzati / Access for authorized users (dgr)9781400826865

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Chronology -- Abbreviations and Conventions -- Introduction. Problems, Methods, Concepts -- Chapter One. Setting The Stage -- Chapter Two. The Politics of Exile and the Crisis of the Archaic Polis -- Chapter Three. From Exile to Ostracism -- Chapter Four. Ostracism and Exile in Democratic Athens -- Chapter Five. Exile and Empire -- Chapter Six. Exile in the Greek Mythical and Historical Imagination -- Conclusion -- Appendix One. The Date of the Athenian Law of Ostracism -- Appendix Two. Ostracism Outside Athens -- Appendix Three. Exile in Spartan Myth and History -- Bibliography -- Index Locorum -- General Index

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This book explores the cultural and political significance of ostracism in democratic Athens. In contrast to previous interpretations, Sara Forsdyke argues that ostracism was primarily a symbolic institution whose meaning for the Athenians was determined both by past experiences of exile and by its role as a context for the ongoing negotiation of democratic values. The first part of the book demonstrates the strong connection between exile and political power in archaic Greece. In Athens and elsewhere, elites seized power by expelling their rivals. Violent intra-elite conflict of this sort was a highly unstable form of "politics that was only temporarily checked by various attempts at elite self-regulation. A lasting solution to the problem of exile was found only in the late sixth century during a particularly intense series of violent expulsions. At this time, the Athenian people rose up and seized simultaneously control over decisions of exile and political power. The close connection between political power and the power of expulsion explains why ostracism was a central part of the democratic reforms. Forsdyke shows how ostracism functioned both as a symbol of democratic power and as a key term in the ideological justification of democratic rule. Crucial to the author's interpretation is the recognition that ostracism was both a remarkably mild form of exile and one that was infrequently used. By analyzing the representation of exile in Athenian imperial decrees, in the works of Herodotus, Thucydides, Plato, Aristotle, and in tragedy and oratory, Forsdyke shows how exile served as an important term in the debate about the best form of rule.

Issued also in print.

Mode of access: Internet via World Wide Web.

In English.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 08. Jul 2019)