Product Description

The Greeks were extraordinary not least because they evolved "a totally new conception of what human life was for". Elaborating on that claim, the author explores the life, culture and history of classical Greece.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #80716 in Books
• Published on: 1991-02-28
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

About the Author
Humphrey Kitto (1897-1982) was Emeritus Professor of Greek at the University of Bristol.

Customer Reviews

Interesting introduction to Ancient Greece, and Greeks :)
The author of "The Greeks", a well-known professor who devoted a great part of his life to the study of Ancient Greece, wrote this book with an aim: help others to understand better the subject that he taught. In my opinion, H. D. F. Kitto fulfilled his self-imposed task marvelously.

Kitto doesn't pretend to write an exhaustive history of Ancient Greece, but rather an introductory book that touches upon many subjects without delving too much into any of them. As a result, after reading this book you will end up with a general idea of the culture, art, literature and historical facts regarding Ancient Greece, but you won't be able to say you know all about it. On the other hand, you will know much more about the Greeks, and the values that shaped them and motivated their actions. That is probably more than enough to recommend this book :)

I want to point out that even though the author doesn't oversimplify the subject at hand to the point of distorting it, he highlights so much certain central ideas that even those who read the book without paying it due attention will understand them. For instance, Kitto emphasizes the great divide that existed for the Greeks between themselves and the others, the barbarians. According to the Greeks, that divide was undeniable because only they had mastered the way of being truly "free". That certitude, and their consequent feeling of exceptionalism, marked all their actions.

Kitto says, in the introduction, that he strove to allow the Greeks to speak for themselves, and the reader gets exactly that impression from time to time. I don't know much about Ancient Greece, but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I guess that is a good indication that even those who just want to dabble in the subject are likely to enjoy it...

I believe that "The Greeks" is a very well-written book, something that combined with the fact that it isn't overly long makes it the kind of reading material that almost everybody might be interested in. All in all, I highly recommend this book to you :)

Belen Alcat

If only all History books were this good
If you are looking for an introduction to ancient Greek history then this is one of the best books to start with. Kitto has an enormous breadth of knowledge which he communicates clearly and avoids the dry, stuffy prose that you may remember from history books at school. It covers the period of Greek history up to but not including the rise of Alexander, and explores most aspects of their society & culture. As well as being informative, it is also a highly entertaining read, which even had me laughing out loud at times. Kitto's enthusiasm is highly infectious and his excellent book has certainly inspired me to look into Greek history in greater depth.

Interesting analysis of Greek world view
It's half a century old and written by someone my copy describes as a 'late Victorian', but HDF Kitto's 'The Greeks' is an engagingly thought-provoking and insightful history of classical Greek civilisation. Kitto writes in a style that is much more enjoyable and entertaining than many of his contemporaries, presenting a host of theories on the Greek state of mind and world view that go a long way to explaining Greek society and actions. Particularly informative is the author's exploration of the 'polis' concept, explaining comprehensively the city-state system and analysing its part in the eventual downfall of Greek civilisation (how far the essentially fragmentary nature of the polis system prevented the Greek culture from expanding or defending itself from more centrally organised, ruthless adversaries like the Roman empire). This is a thoroughly enjoyable and enlightening book.