- Paperback: 352 pages
- Publisher: John Murray Publishers Ltd (7 Feb 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0719555450
- ISBN-13: 978-0719555459
- Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.8 x 3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 313,582 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Review
'Confident, intelligent and assertive! he draws many telling lessons' -- Oliver Taplin, Guardian Weekly 20040730 'Simon Goldhill reminds us in Love, Sex & Tragedy of how Greek representations of the body beautiful, architecture and ideas of philosophy and democracy still influence us today.' -- New Scientist 20040807 'Love, Sex and Tragedy has the popular intellectual grace of de Botton's How Proust Can Change Your Life, but it is more than clever and everywhere avoids being tongue-in-cheek. ... I wish more classicists would write as invitingly and honestly as Goldhill does ... The world would be a better place.' -- Times Higher Education Supplement 20040924 'Goldhill is the kind of classics master whose lessons you wouldn't want to skip' -- Independent on Sunday 20040924 'This book is thoroughly enjoyable and refreshing' -- History Today 20041201 'In this accessible, non-academic, yet highly informative work Goldhill weaves expertly through a whole host of contemporary phobias and nightmares, pleasures and dreams to demonstrate the social, political and personal debts we owe to the Greeks' -- Scotsman 20040515 'Enjoyable and lively' -- TLS 20040625 'This book is a call-to-arms in the face of a rapidly disintegrating culture.' -- Good Book Guide 20050301 'This is a good book.' -- Focus 20050501 'Passionate, witty and broad-ranging ... Goldhill skilfully overturns and amends our existing beliefs and is superb when discussing the origins of democracy, the importance of tragedy and, inevitably, sex' -- Observer 'Goldhill does for declensions what Alain de Botton did for Descartes' -- Tatler 'Terrifically good ... As this brilliant book demonstrates, a familiarity with the ancient world is about much more than a life in ruins' -- Independent 'It's great, and great fun ... the kind of book you find yourself reading out to your other half as you go along ... A sparkling, erudite and amusing remedy for our collective historical amnesia' -- ZADIE SMITH '[A] wonderful biography' -- Spectator 20041113 'His sharp essays on significant sites (from the stage to the arena) excite, enlighten and temper "relavance" with "otherness"' -- Independent 20050218 'An exhilaratingly intelligent exercise in evangelism' -- Guardian 20050219 'In a breezy, user-friendly tone Goldhill tells us why classics matter.' Iain Finlayson -- The Times 20050312
Oliver Taplin, Guardian Weekly
'Confident, intelligent and assertive… he draws many telling lessons’
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
While a small figurehead of classicists work extremely hard to keep declensions and oratio obliqua popular by using memorable mascots and Harry Potter, Goldhill takes a different route. His delightful romp through classical culture is deceivingly light-hearted as each section of his book holds a disconcertingly accurate mirror up to our world today. Instead of making specific judgements he leaves questions unanswered, letting the reader wonder at their own preconceptions. A very engaging, if sometimes uncomfortable, read.
3 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
a great introduction into the classical world, it is fascinating and gripping form the beginning to the end. goldhill's language and writing is absolutely superb, a thoroughly interesting, entrancing and enjoyable read!
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
1 review
Excellent and Informative
29 Aug 2006
Format:Paperback
It is wonderful and rare to find a book that is essentially philosophy written in a way that makes it a pleasure to read. A few of the topics discussed:
* How the modern image of the body was formed in the gymnasium of ancient Greece, which had personal trainers, fad diets, etc.
* How St. Paul and the early Christians considered marriage an "honourable institution" meaning not nearly as good as chastity or celibacy, but much better than fornication.
* How self knowledge must include knowledge of the history of one's culture.
* How the modern image of the body was formed in the gymnasium of ancient Greece, which had personal trainers, fad diets, etc.
* How St. Paul and the early Christians considered marriage an "honourable institution" meaning not nearly as good as chastity or celibacy, but much better than fornication.
* How self knowledge must include knowledge of the history of one's culture.
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