A Problem in Greek Ethics

Symonds, John Addington, 1840-1893Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.8

Word count: 198K words
Chapters: 20

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.A Problem in Greek Ethics by John Addington SymondsAuthor: Symonds, John Addington, 1840-1893,Language: English, Class: HQ: Social sciences: The family, Marriage, Sex and Gender, Release Date: Apr 17, 2010

Editor's review

A Problem in Greek Ethics is a long essay written by the English author John Addington Symonds in the late nineteenth century and is an early document at the intersection of classical studies and the history of sexual ethics. Drawing on ancient Greek sources, the author discusses attitudes toward same-sex affection and relationships in ancient Greek society and their institutional context; in the history of scholarship it is regarded as one of the pioneering texts on this subject. Its value lies not in offering conclusions in today's sense but in showing how a Victorian scholar used classical studies to address a sensitive topic: its arguments bear the limitations of their time, and both its wording and its presuppositions require critical scrutiny. The style is that of an academic essay, densely referenced, and the original English is somewhat difficult. It is suitable as supplementary material for the history of classical reception, the history of gender, and Victorian intellectual history, read alongside introductions by modern scholars; if you merely want common knowledge about ancient Greek society, this is not the book to start with.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Undergraduate and graduate readers studying the social history of ancient Greece and the history of gender
Academic readers interested in nineteenth-century intellectual history and the history of classical reception
Writers who need to know the early academic literature on sexual ethics
Readers with English reading ability who are willing to read primary sources critically

Not a good fit for

Beginners seeking a light, popular introduction to ancient Greek culture
Readers who struggle with English and cannot handle dense references and long sentences
Readers expecting a systematic framework of gender theory from a contemporary perspective

Reading tips

Read a modern scholar's introduction to ancient Greek sexual ethics before entering the original text, so as not to be led astray by nineteenth-century presuppositions.
Note the classical sources the author cites as you read, and check key quotations against English translations.
Read the arguments alongside the author's historical context, distinguishing statements of historical fact from period prejudice.
The text is not long; read it in two or three sittings, writing a short critical summary after each.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a systematic general survey of ancient Greek ethics?

No. It is a long polemical essay built around a specific issue, focusing on attitudes toward same-sex affection and relationships in ancient Greek society and the related institutions, rather than a comprehensive introduction to ancient Greek ethical thought. It should be read as a topical document with a clear problematic, not as a textbook-style survey.

Can I read it without a background in classics?

You can, but it will be demanding. The author cites ancient Greek sources extensively and assumes some familiarity with Homer, Plato, and others. It is advisable first to acquire basic knowledge of ancient Greek history and classical literature, or to read alongside modern scholarly works with annotations; otherwise you may remember only the conclusions without being able to judge whether the arguments are sound.

Do the book's views still hold today?

That depends on what you mean. Much of the classical material the author collects and discusses is still of reference value, but his argumentative framework, wording, and moral presuppositions are distinctly nineteenth-century, and some of his inferences have been revised by later scholarship. When reading, distinguish statements of historical fact from the author's period judgments, check them against modern scholarship, and do not cite them directly as settled conclusions.

What are the features of this edition?

This is the English electronic edition released by Project Gutenberg, a free public-domain ebook that is convenient for searching and excerpting but has no modern scholarly introduction or detailed annotations. If you are using it for research or writing, it is advisable to find a modern edition with an introduction and notes for comparison, so as to understand the scholarly context of the discussion and later revisions.

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About the author

Symonds, John Addington, 1840-1893 Author

John Addington Symonds (1840–1893) was a British writer and literary scholar. Publicly available information about the details of his life is limited, but the seventeen works held in this collection clearly indicate his main areas of writing. He devoted himself for many years to the study of the Italian Renaissance; his representative multi-volume work Renaissance in Italy surveys the culture and art of the period with a broad vision, while The Life of Michelangelo Buonarroti focuses on the artist's life and work. He also wrote Studies of the Greek Poets, sketches and studies on Italy and Greece, and a study of Percy Bysshe Shelley. His style is elegant and detailed, combining historical scholarship with literary appreciation, and he exerted a lasting influence on the dissemination of knowledge of the Renaissance and of classical Greek literature in the English-speaking world.