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Book Cover
E-book
Author Zavaliy, Andrei G., author

Title Courage and cowardice in Ancient Greece : from Homer to Aristotle / Andrei G. Zavaliy
Published Cham, Switzerland : Springer, 2020

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Description 1 online resource
Contents Intro -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- Contents -- About the Author -- Chapter 1: Introduction: Discovering an Ancient Virtue -- 1.1 Courage and the Common Sense -- 1.2 Moderns and the 'Species' of Courage -- 1.3 Between Homer and Aristotle -- 1.4 Methodology and the Plan of the Book -- References -- Chapter 2: Archaic Greece: Courageous Hero in the Homeric Epics -- 2.1 Introduction and Terminology -- 2.2 The Role of Thumos in Homeric Courage -- 2.3 Courage as an Aristocratic Duty -- 2.4 Shame and Glory as Two Fundamental Concerns -- 2.5 Courage and the Gender Issue
2.6 The Signs of Courage and Cowardice -- 2.7 Courage and Recklessness -- 2.8 Summary and Conclusions -- References -- Chapter 3: Martial Valor in Post-Homeric Poetry -- 3.1 Admirers and Dissenters: A Brief Overview -- 3.2 The Faithful Followers: Tyrtaeus and Callinus -- 3.3 The Postmortem Rewards of Courage: Why Should We Fight? -- 3.4 Close Range Fighting and Endurance -- 3.5 The Survivor's Benefits -- 3.6 The Beauty of Death on the Battlefield -- 3.7 The Question of Loyalties in Homer and the Poets -- 3.8 Simonides on the Heroes of the Persian Wars -- 3.9 Concluding Remarks -- References
Chapter 4: The Bold Challengers: Cowardice, Irony, and Mockery -- 4.1 Dethroning Homer: The Early Attempts -- 4.2 The Lost Shield and the Love of Life: The Case of Archilochus -- 4.3 More Shields Lost: Alcaeus and Anacreon -- 4.4 Courage and Hedonism -- 4.5 War and Peace in Aristophanes and the Danger of Courage -- 4.6 A Courageous Playwright: Beyond the Traditional Limits -- References -- Chapter 5: Courage in Real-Life: The Historians' Approach -- 5.1 Fiction and Reality in Greek Historians -- 5.2 Herodotus and His Method -- 5.3 A Rare Virtue
5.4 The Value of Choice: Forced and Voluntary Courage -- 5.5 The Epitome of Martial Valor: The Battle at Thermopylae -- 5.6 Courage in Non-martial Contexts -- 5.7 The Great Divide: An Athenian Variety of Courage -- References -- Chapter 6: Courage and Cowardice in Plato's Dialogues -- 6.1 The Many Faces of Plato and the Philosophers' Take -- 6.2 Courage, Wisdom and Confidence in the Protagoras -- 6.3 The Quest for Non-martial Courage in the Laches -- 6.4 Taming the Guardians' Thumos in the Republic -- 6.5 The Demotion of Courage: Confronting Tyrtaeus in the Laws -- References
Chapter 7: Aristotle's Revisionism: A Return to Homeric Roots -- 7.1 A Restoration Project -- 7.2 Aristotle's Criteria for a Courageous Warrior -- 7.3 The Noble Goal of Courage -- 7.4 The Deficient Forms of Courage -- 7.5 A Case-Study: Is Suicide an Act of Cowardice? -- 7.6 Homer and the Courage of the Citizen-Soldiers -- 7.7 Thumos and Spirited Courage: Where Did Homer Go Wrong? -- 7.8 Vindication of Homer and Final Remarks -- References -- Chapter 8: Conclusion: The Fate of Courage in the Modern World -- 8.1 From Battlefield to the Philosopher's Study -- 8.2 What We Owe to the Ancients
Summary The book offers the first comprehensive account of the debate on true courage as it was raging in ancient Greece, from the times when the immensely influential Homeric epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey, were composed, to the period of the equally influential author, Aristotle. The many voices that contribute to this debate include poets, authors of ancient dramas and comedies, historians, politicians and philosophers. The book traces the origin of the earliest ideal of a courageous hero in the epic poems of Homer (8th century BCE), and faithfully records its transformations in later authors, which range from an emphatic denial of the Homeric standards of courage (as in comedies of Aristophanes and some Dialogues of Plato) to the strong revisionist tendencies of Aristotle, who attempts to restore genuine courage to its traditional place as an exclusively martial, male virtue. Without attempting to cover the whole of the Western history, the book is able to explore the most important primary Greek sources on the subject matter in greater details, and provide the reader with a comprehensive picture of the changes in both popular and philosophical conceptualizations of the standards of courage from the Archaic period to the middle of the 4th century BCE. A deeper understanding of the history of the debate on courage should help to shape the modern discussions as well, as it becomes obvious that many of the questions on courage and cowardice that are still raised by the contemporary authors from different fields, have been thoroughly considered during the early stages of Greek culture. The book seeks to undermine a common stereotype of a single, unified view on courage and cowardice in Ancient Greece and shows that the current debates on what constitutes genuine courageous character can be traced to the various direct and indirect discussions on this subject matter by the ancient authorities
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index
Subject Courage.
Greek literature -- Themes, motives.
Greek literature -- History and criticism
Courage in literature.
Literary studies: poetry & poets.
Ethics & moral philosophy.
Western philosophy: Ancient, to c 500.
Literary studies: classical, early & medieval.
History of Western philosophy.
Literary Criticism -- Poetry.
Philosophy -- Ethics & Moral Philosophy.
Philosophy -- History & Surveys -- Ancient & Classical.
Literary Criticism -- Ancient & Classical.
Philosophy -- History & Surveys -- General.
Courage
Courage in literature
Greek literature
Greek literature -- Themes, motives
Genre/Form Festschriften
Criticism, interpretation, etc.
Festschriften.
Form Electronic book
ISBN 9783030476069
3030476065