Power & the People: Five Lessons from the Birthplace of Democracy - Hardcover

Scott, Alev; Makres, Andronike

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1529402840 ISBN 13: 9781529402841

Publisher: riverrun, 2019

Synopsis

DEMOCRACY WAS BORN IN ATHENS. FROM ITS FOUNDING MYTHS TO ITS GOLDEN AGE AND ITS CHAOTIC DOWNFALL, IT'S RICH WITH LESSONS FOR OUR OWN TIMES.

'Timely and fascinating' Robin Lane Fox


Why did vital civic engagement and fair debate descend into populism and paralysis? Can we compare the demagogue Cleon to President Trump, the Athenian Empire to modern America, or the stubborn island of Melos to Brexit Britain? How did a second referendum save the Athenians from a bloodthirsty decision? Who were the last defenders of democracy in the changing, globalised world of the 4th Century BC, and how do we unconsciously echo them today?

With verve and acuity, the heroics and the critics of Athenian democracy are brought to bear on today's politics, revealing in all its glories and its flaws the system that still survives to execute the power of the people.

About this title

About the Authors

Alev Scott was born in London in 1987 to a Turkish mother and a British father. She studied Classics at Oxford before working in London as an assistant director in theatre and opera. In 2011 she moved to Istanbul, where she taught Latin at the Bosphorus University. Her first book, Turkish Awakening, was published in 2014. Alev writes for numerous publications, including the Guardian. Her second book, Ottoman Odyssey, was shortlisted for the Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year Award in 2019. Her third book is Power & the People, written with Andronike Makres.

Andronike Makres is a founding member of the Hellenic Education & Research Center. She graduated from the University of Athens and holds a D.Phil. in Ancient History from Oxford University. Her research focuses on ancient Greek history and epigraphy. She lives in Athens.

Edition details

• Publisher: riverrun
• Publication date: 2019
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1529402840
• ISBN 13: 9781529402841
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 272