Alexander to Actium: The Historical Evolution of the Hellenistic Age (Hellenistic Culture and Society Book 1)

The Hellenistic Age, the three extraordinary centuries from the death of Alexander in 323 B. C. to Octavian's final defeat of Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium, has offered a rich and variegated field of exploration for historians, philosophers, economists, and literary critics. Yet few scholars have attempted the daunting task of seeing the period whole, of refracting its achievements and reception through the lens of a single critical mind. __Alexander to Actium__ was conceived and written to fill that gap. In this monumental work, Peter Green—noted scholar, writer, and critic—breaks with the traditional practice of dividing the Hellenistic world into discrete, repetitious studies of Seleucids, Ptolemies, Antigonids, and Attalids. He instead treats these successor kingdoms as a single, evolving, interrelated continuum. The result clarifies the political picture as never before. With the help of over 200 illustrations, Green surveys every significant aspect of Hellenistic cultural development, from mathematics to medicine, from philosophy to religion, from literature to the visual arts. Green offers a particularly trenchant analysis of what has been seen as the conscious dissemination in the East of Hellenistic culture, and finds it largely a myth fueled by Victorian scholars seeking justification for a no longer morally respectable imperialism. His work leaves us with a final impression of the Hellenistic Age as a world with haunting and disturbing resemblances to our own. This lively, personal survey of a period as colorful as it is complex will fascinate the general reader no less than students and scholars. Pt. 1. Alexander's Funeral Games, 323-276 B.c. Perdiccas, Eumenes, Cassander, 323-316 -- Antigonus One-eye's Bid For Empire, 316-301 -- Demetrius Of Phaleron : The Philosopher-king In Action -- Zeno, Diogenes, Epicurus, And Political Disenchantment -- Theophrastus, Menander, And The Transformation Of Attic Comedy -- The Politics Of Royal Patronage : Early Ptolemaic Alexandria -- Early Hellenistic Art And Its Antecedents, 380-270 : Space, Pathos, Realism ; Or, The Horse As Critic -- The Division Of The Spoils, 301-276 -- Pt. 2. The Zenith Century, 276-222 B.c. Ptolemy Philadelphos And Antigonus Gonatas, 276-239 -- The New Urban Culture : Alexandria, Antioch, Pergamon -- The Critic As Poet : Callimachus, Aratus Of Soli, Lycophron -- Kingship And Bureaucracy : The Government Of The Successor Kingdoms -- Armchair Epic : Apollonius Rhodius And The Voyage Of Argo -- Events In The West : Sicily, Magna Graecia, Rome -- Urbanized Pastoralism, Or Vice Versa : The Idylls Of Theocritus, The Mimes Of Herodas -- The Road To Sellasia, 239-222 -- Pt. 3. Phalanx And Legion, 221-168 B.c. Polybius And The New Era -- Antiochus Iii, Philip V, And The Roman Factor, 221-196 -- The Spread Of Hellenism : Exploration, Assimilation, Colonialism ; Or, The Dog That Barked In The Night -- Middle-period Hellenistic Art, 270-150 : Si Monumentum Requiris... -- Production, Trade, Finance -- The Individual And Society : Slavery, Revolution, Utopias -- Ruler Cults, Traditional Religion, And The Ambivalence Of Tyche -- From Cynoscephalae To Pydna : The Decline And Fall Of Macedonia, 196-168 -- Pt. 4. The Breaking Of Nations, 167-116 B.c. The Wilderness As Peace, 167-146 -- Mathematics And Astronomy : The Alternative Immortality -- Technological Developments : Science As Praxis -- Hellenistic Medicine; Or, The Eye Has Its Limitations -- Hellenism And The Jews : An Ideological Resistance Movement? -- Ptolemaic And Seleucid Decadence And The Rise Of Parthia, 145-116 -- Pt. 5. Rome Triumphant, 116-30 B.c. Mithridates, Sulla, And The Freedom Of The Greeks, 116-80 -- Late Hellenistic Art, 150-30 : The Mass Market In Nostalgia -- Foreign And Mystery Cults, Oracles, Astrology, Magic -- Academics, Skeptics, Peripatetics, Cynics -- The Garden Of Epicurus -- Stoicism : The Wide And Sheltering Porch -- Caesar, Pompey, And The Last Of The Ptolemies, 80-30. Peter Green. A Centennial Book--p. Before Ser. T.p. Second Printing With Corrections, 1993--verso Of T.p. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 909-928) And Index. The Hellenistic Age, the three extraordinary centuries from the death of Alexander in 323 B. C. to Octavian's final defeat of Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium, has offered a rich and variegated field of exploration for historians, philosophers, economists, and literary critics. Yet few scholars have attempted the daunting task of seeing the period whole, of refracting its achievements and reception through the lens of a single critical mind. Alexander to Actium was conceived and written to fill that gap.

In this monumental work, Peter Green—noted scholar, writer, and critic—breaks with the traditional practice of dividing the Hellenistic world into discrete, repetitious studies of Seleucids, Ptolemies, Antigonids, and Attalids. He instead treats these successor kingdoms as a single, evolving, interrelated continuum. The result clarifies the political picture as never before. With the help of over 200 illustrations, Green surveys every significant aspect of Hellenistic cultural development, from mathematics to medicine, from philosophy to religion, from literature to the visual arts.

Green offers a particularly trenchant analysis of what has been seen as the conscious dissemination in the East of Hellenistic culture, and finds it largely a myth fueled by Victorian scholars seeking justification for a no longer morally respectable imperialism. His work leaves us with a final impression of the Hellenistic Age as a world with haunting and disturbing resemblances to our own. This lively, personal survey of a period as colorful as it is complex will fascinate the general reader no less than students and scholars. Contents Maps Preface and Acknowledgments Preface to the Second Printing Part One. Alexander's Funeral Games, 323-276 B. C. Part Two. The Zenith Century 276-222 B. C. Part Three. Phalanx And Legion 221-168 B. C. Part Four. The Breaking of Nations 167-116 B. C. Part Five. Rome Triumphant 116-30 B. C. Chronology Genealogical Tables Notes Select Bibliography Index A meticulous analysis of Hellenistic culture spanning three centuries, from the death of Alexander the Great in 325 B.C. Green surveys every significant aspect of Hellenistic cultural development in this colorful, complex period that will fascinate all readers. 217 illustrations, 30 maps.