---
product_id: 421016509
title: "Classics: A Very Short Introduction"
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---

# Classics: A Very Short Introduction

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## Description

Classics: A Very Short Introduction : Henderson: desertcart.in: Books

Review: A novel take on 'the Classics' in a volume that avoids the usual emphasis on history and the arts. Instead, it focuses on such intangibles as identity in the ancient world. The authors take the Greek writer Pausanias as a starting point. Although he was was writing his 'Guidebook to Greece' more than two centuries after Greece had become a Roman colony, he chooses to write about Greek civilisation, architecture and history as though it were still independent of Roman influence. His silence on matters Roman speaks volumes and reminds us that reading between the lines is sometimes more revealing than reading the lines themselves. Beard and Henderson suggest that Classics is not the study of a dead culture but a live, interactive process informed by the 'vast community of readers across the millennia'. Their book dwells on the friezes from the Temple of Apollo at Bassae - initially, at what seems too great a length, but actually for very good reason. The temple friezes, now on exhibit at the British Museum, are independent blocks of marble that can be reassembled in many different ways. Bassae is therefore a metaphor for discovery and re-evaluation. Furthermore, the temple is set in Arcadia - a region of huge importance for literature, religion and philosophy, giving it yet more symbolic significance. As the authors suggest, the notion of Arcadia - sometimes paradise, sometimes brutish wilderness - is itself capable of multiple interpretation, like so many aspects of the ancient world. Each new generation's interpretations and insights shed extra light on, and themselves become part of, the classical heritage. The book's unexpected emphasis on the historic reception of classics constitutes, perhaps, its major strength. It is an emphasis reflected in the concluding Timeline, two pages of which record events from 800 BCE to the Renaissance and the other two and a half pages to events such as the election of Dr Johnson to a Professorship at the RA (1770) and the publication of Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose (1980). Probably not everyone's idea of a classical initiation, but this is a fresh and stimulating introduction to what can still seem a dauntingly élitist and exclusive area of study.
Review: This short book discusses the important but changing role played by Classics in our civilization over the past 2000 years. The temple at Bassae, unknown to me until I read this book, serves as a recurring example of how perceptions and interpretations evolved. In conclusion, the work deals relatively lengthily with Arcadia, an actual region of Greece. The result is extremely interesting and of high intellectual level. By no means, however, does it qualify as an introduction to the topic. On the contrary, the reader is expected to be familiar with Greek and Roman authors and their works as well as with classical architecture. Though the book is really not expensive, one would expect illustrations to be of a much higher quality. Photos are tiny and black and white, sketches, as of the frieze in the Bassae temple, are minimalist and maps are not of professional quality. (What is Washington, D.C., doing on a map of the classical world?). Overall this brief book is recommended to those interested very specifically in its topic, the varying significance of Classics.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #243,992 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #752 in Ancient History (Books) #784 in Architecture (Books) #810 in History of Civilization & Culture |
| Customer Reviews | 4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars (266) |
| Dimensions  | 17.86 x 0.97 x 11.25 cm |
| Edition  | Revised ed. |
| ISBN-10  | 0192853856 |
| ISBN-13  | 978-0192853851 |
| Importer  | Atlantic Publishers and Distributors (P) Ltd., 7/22, Ansari Road, Darya Ganj, New Delhi - 110002 INDIA, Email – customercare@atlanticbooks.com, Ph – 011-47320500 |
| Item Weight  | 1 kg 50 g |
| Language  | English |
| Part of series  | Very Short Introductions |
| Print length  | 160 pages |
| Publication date  | 12 May 2000 |
| Publisher  | OUP UK |

## Images

![Classics: A Very Short Introduction - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81+qQiJz4JL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review
*by J***S on 15 February 2008*

A novel take on 'the Classics' in a volume that avoids the usual emphasis on history and the arts. Instead, it focuses on such intangibles as identity in the ancient world. The authors take the Greek writer Pausanias as a starting point. Although he was was writing his 'Guidebook to Greece' more than two centuries after Greece had become a Roman colony, he chooses to write about Greek civilisation, architecture and history as though it were still independent of Roman influence. His silence on matters Roman speaks volumes and reminds us that reading between the lines is sometimes more revealing than reading the lines themselves. Beard and Henderson suggest that Classics is not the study of a dead culture but a live, interactive process informed by the 'vast community of readers across the millennia'. Their book dwells on the friezes from the Temple of Apollo at Bassae - initially, at what seems too great a length, but actually for very good reason. The temple friezes, now on exhibit at the British Museum, are independent blocks of marble that can be reassembled in many different ways. Bassae is therefore a metaphor for discovery and re-evaluation. Furthermore, the temple is set in Arcadia - a region of huge importance for literature, religion and philosophy, giving it yet more symbolic significance. As the authors suggest, the notion of Arcadia - sometimes paradise, sometimes brutish wilderness - is itself capable of multiple interpretation, like so many aspects of the ancient world. Each new generation's interpretations and insights shed extra light on, and themselves become part of, the classical heritage. The book's unexpected emphasis on the historic reception of classics constitutes, perhaps, its major strength. It is an emphasis reflected in the concluding Timeline, two pages of which record events from 800 BCE to the Renaissance and the other two and a half pages to events such as the election of Dr Johnson to a Professorship at the RA (1770) and the publication of Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose (1980). Probably not everyone's idea of a classical initiation, but this is a fresh and stimulating introduction to what can still seem a dauntingly élitist and exclusive area of study.

### ⭐⭐⭐ Review
*by P***R on 26 January 2011*

This short book discusses the important but changing role played by Classics in our civilization over the past 2000 years. The temple at Bassae, unknown to me until I read this book, serves as a recurring example of how perceptions and interpretations evolved. In conclusion, the work deals relatively lengthily with Arcadia, an actual region of Greece. The result is extremely interesting and of high intellectual level. By no means, however, does it qualify as an introduction to the topic. On the contrary, the reader is expected to be familiar with Greek and Roman authors and their works as well as with classical architecture. Though the book is really not expensive, one would expect illustrations to be of a much higher quality. Photos are tiny and black and white, sketches, as of the frieze in the Bassae temple, are minimalist and maps are not of professional quality. (What is Washington, D.C., doing on a map of the classical world?). Overall this brief book is recommended to those interested very specifically in its topic, the varying significance of Classics.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review
*by P***E on 21 November 2010*

The timeline at the end of this book gives a clue to the authors' approach. It starts at c800-500 BCE ("Early Greece"), ends at 1995 with the publication of this book, and includes entries like "1959 Ben Hur film starring Charlton Heston". It is about Classics as a subject, about how the Classical world has been viewed and interpreted over the years, and how it continues to impact today's world. In other words, it is more about the nature and significance of Classics as a discipline than about specific Classical topics. That makes it an excellent introduction for someone embarking on such a study. The Further Reading section at the end is something of a letdown, being just an unhelpful list of titles. See Classical Mythology: A Very Short Introduction, by Helen Morales, for an example of how a Further Reading section should be done. In fact, the Morales book should be seen as a companion volume to the present one. But this is a well written and entertaining exploration of a fascinating subject, full of valuable insights. Read this first and then the Morales book. [PeterReeve]

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