Overview

Hailed as magisterial when it first appeared, Greek Homosexuality remains an academic milestone and continues to be of major importance for students and scholars of gender studies. Kenneth Dover explores the understanding of homosexuality in ancient Greece, examining a vast array of material and textual evidence that leads him to provocative conclusions. This new release of the 1989 second edition, for which Dover wrote an epilogue reflecting on the impact of his book, includes two specially commissioned forewords assessing the author’s legacy and the place of his text within modern studies of gender in the ancient world.

Full Product Details

Author:   Sir K. J. Dover (late of University of St Andrews, UK) ,  Stephen Halliwell (University of St Andrews, UK) ,  Dr Mark Masterson ,  James Robson (Open University, UK)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   Bloomsbury Academic
Dimensions:   Width: 15.60cm , Height: 1.50cm , Length: 23.40cm
Weight:   0.522kg
ISBN:  

9781474257152

ISBN 10:   1474257151
Pages:   336
Publication Date:   19 May 2016
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Undergraduate ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.

Table of Contents

Foreword: The Book and Its Author (Stephen Halliwell, University of St Andrews, UK) Foreword: The Book and its Influence (Mark Masterson, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, and James Robson, Open University, UK) Preface Abbreviations I PROBLEMS, SOURCES AND METHODS 1 Scale 2 The Visual Arts 3 Literature 4 Vocabulary II THE PROSECUTION OF TIMARKHOS A The Law 1 Male Prostitution 2 Penalties 3 Status 4 Hubris B Manifestations of Eros 1 Defences against a Charge of Prostitution 2 Eros and Desire 3 Eros and Love 4 Following and Fighting 5 Homosexual Poetry C Nature and Society 1 Natura/Impulse 2 Male and Female Physique 3 Masculine and Feminine Styles 4 Pursuit and Flight 5 Courtship and Copulation 6 Dominant and Subordinate Roles III SPECIAL ASPECTS AND DEVELOPMENTS A Publicity B Predilections and Fantasies C Comic Exploitation D Philosophical Exploitation E Women and Homosexuality IV CHANGES A The Dorians B Myth and History Postscript, 1989 List of Vases Bibliography Index of Greek Texts and Documents Index of Greek Words General Index

Reviews

An unprejudiced description of the homosexual phenomena depicted by classical Greek artists and writers has long been an urgent desideratum. Dover's book fills this need successfully. In its collection and interpretation of the ancient evidence it will be indispensable for broader and/or more specialized explorations of the sexual aspects of Greek art and society. * Classical World * [Re-released] with fine new introductory material from Stephen Halliwell ... This is arguably Dover's best, and unarguably his most influential, book. * Times Literary Supplement * A landmark study.... One cannot underestimate the importance of Mr. Dover's book. With philological brilliance and scholarly objectivity, he presents facts that can no longer be ignored. It is a step closer toward understanding the complex nature of the Greeks, whom we claim as cultural fathers. It is also a step closer to understanding human nature. -- Erich Segal * New York Times Book Review * In Greek classes past teachers used to slide quickly over the exact nature of the relationships between men and boys in ancient Athens.... In this expert, candid, and wry study all is made clear. * Washington Post * Greek Homosexuality provides--finally--an unvarnished look at Athenian homosexuality.... [It is] now the standard volume on the subject. -- John Scarborough * American Historical Review * Dover's is an authoritative discussion; he is a philologist of great stature with wide achievement as editor, commentator, and literary critic.... The subject was one which needed to be exposed to the light of day; we can be thankful that it has been done by a great scholar and one who treats the subject without prejudice. -- Bernard Knox * New York Review of Books * Halliwell, Masterson and Robson have provided a welcome gift to the academic community. Their re-edition of Greek Homosexuality offers to senior scholars a stimulating reading, while it presents to younger students an exemplary book that shows how scientific research should ideally open up new frontiers, leaving at the same time space for further questions, debates and theorisations. This is an iconic book indeed, one that not just concerns historical phenomena, but which is a story in itself, a historiographical milestone. * The Classical Review * Dover's text merits re-reading not just for its masterly synthesis of a wide range of evidence and as a starting point for this rich area of scholarship, but also for the balance he achieves in his discussions of male same-sex relationships. ... [T]he picture he paints of sexual relationships is arguably more rounded and human than any subsequent scholar has achieved. * ARGO: A Hellenic Review * [A] welcome republication of the second edition (1989) of the late Kenneth Dover's `landmark' study. * Classics For All Reviews *

An unprejudiced description of the homosexual phenomena depicted by classical Greek artists and writers has long been an urgent desideratum. Dover's book fills this need successfully. In its collection and interpretation of the ancient evidence it will be indispensable for broader and/or more specialized explorations of the sexual aspects of Greek art and society. * Classical World * [Re-released] with fine new introductory material from Stephen Halliwell ... This is arguably Dover's best, and unarguably his most influential, book. * Times Literary Supplement * A landmark study.... One cannot underestimate the importance of Mr. Dover's book. With philological brilliance and scholarly objectivity, he presents facts that can no longer be ignored. It is a step closer toward understanding the complex nature of the Greeks, whom we claim as cultural fathers. It is also a step closer to understanding human nature. -- Erich Segal * New York Times Book Review * In Greek classes past teachers used to slide quickly over the exact nature of the relationships between men and boys in ancient Athens.... In this expert, candid, and wry study all is made clear. * Washington Post * Greek Homosexuality provides--finally--an unvarnished look at Athenian homosexuality.... [It is] now the standard volume on the subject. -- John Scarborough * American Historical Review * Dover's is an authoritative discussion; he is a philologist of great stature with wide achievement as editor, commentator, and literary critic.... The subject was one which needed to be exposed to the light of day; we can be thankful that it has been done by a great scholar and one who treats the subject without prejudice. -- Bernard Knox * New York Review of Books * Dover's text merits re-reading not just for its masterly synthesis of a wide range of evidence and as a starting point for this rich area of scholarship, but also for the balance he achieves in his discussions of male same-sex relationships. ... [T]he picture he paints of sexual relationships is arguably more rounded and human than any subsequent scholar has achieved. * ARGO: A Hellenic Review * [A] welcome republication of the second edition (1989) of the late Kenneth Dover's `landmark' study. * Classics For All Reviews *

An unprejudiced description of the homosexual phenomena depicted by classical Greek artists and writers has long been an urgent desideratum. Dover's book fills this need successfully. In its collection and interpretation of the ancient evidence it will be indispensable for broader and/or more specialized explorations of the sexual aspects of Greek art and society. Classical World [Re-released] with fine new introductory material from Stephen Halliwell ... This is arguably Dover's best, and unarguably his most influential, book. Times Literary Supplement A landmark study... One cannot underestimate the importance of Mr. Dover's book. With philological brilliance and scholarly objectivity, he presents facts that can no longer be ignored. It is a step closer toward understanding the complex nature of the Greeks, whom we claim as cultural fathers. It is also a step closer to understanding human nature. -- Erich Segal New York Times Book Review In Greek classes past teachers used to slide quickly over the exact nature of the relationships between men and boys in ancient Athens... In this expert, candid, and wry study all is made clear. Washington Post Greek Homosexuality provides--finally--an unvarnished look at Athenian homosexuality... [It is] now the standard volume on the subject. -- John Scarborough American Historical Review Dover's is an authoritative discussion; he is a philologist of great stature with wide achievement as editor, commentator, and literary critic... The subject was one which needed to be exposed to the light of day; we can be thankful that it has been done by a great scholar and one who treats the subject without prejudice. -- Bernard Knox New York Review of Books Dover's text merits re-reading not just for its masterly synthesis of a wide range of evidence and as a starting point for this rich area of scholarship, but also for the balance he achieves in his discussions of male same-sex relationships. ... [T]he picture he paints of sexual relationships is arguably more rounded and human than any subsequent scholar has achieved. ARGO: A Hellenic Review [A] welcome republication of the second edition (1989) of the late Kenneth Dover's 'landmark' study. Classics For All Reviews

A landmark study... One cannot underestimate the importance of Mr. Dover's book. With philological brilliance and scholarly objectivity, he presents facts that can no longer be ignored. It is a step closer toward understanding the complex nature of the Greeks, whom we claim as cultural fathers. It is also a step closer to understanding human nature. -- Erich Segal New York Times Book Review An unprejudiced description of the homosexual phenomena depicted by classical Greek artists and writers has long been an urgent desideratum. Dover's book fills this need successfully. In its collection and interpretation of the ancient evidence it will be indispensable for broader and/or more specialized explorations of the sexual aspects of Greek art and society. -- Jeffrey Henderson Classical World In Greek classes past teachers used to slide quickly over the exact nature of the relationships between men and boys in ancient Athens... In this expert, candid, and wry study all is made clear. Washington Post Greek Homosexuality provides--finally--an unvarnished look at Athenian homosexuality... [It is] now the standard volume on the subject. -- John Scarborough American Historical Review Dover's is an authoritative discussion; he is a philologist of great stature with wide achievement as editor, commentator, and literary critic... The subject was one which needed to be exposed to the light of day; we can be thankful that it has been done by a great scholar and one who treats the subject without prejudice. -- Bernard Knox New York Review of Books

An unprejudiced description of the homosexual phenomena depicted by classical Greek artists and writers has long been an urgent desideratum. Dover's book fills this need successfully. In its collection and interpretation of the ancient evidence it will be indispensable for broader and/or more specialized explorations of the sexual aspects of Greek art and society. * Classical World * [Re-released] with fine new introductory material from Stephen Halliwell ... This is arguably Dover's best, and unarguably his most influential, book. * Times Literary Supplement * A landmark study.... One cannot underestimate the importance of Mr. Dover's book. With philological brilliance and scholarly objectivity, he presents facts that can no longer be ignored. It is a step closer toward understanding the complex nature of the Greeks, whom we claim as cultural fathers. It is also a step closer to understanding human nature. -- Erich Segal * New York Times Book Review * In Greek classes past teachers used to slide quickly over the exact nature of the relationships between men and boys in ancient Athens.... In this expert, candid, and wry study all is made clear. * Washington Post * Greek Homosexuality provides--finally--an unvarnished look at Athenian homosexuality.... [It is] now the standard volume on the subject. -- John Scarborough * American Historical Review * Dover's is an authoritative discussion; he is a philologist of great stature with wide achievement as editor, commentator, and literary critic.... The subject was one which needed to be exposed to the light of day; we can be thankful that it has been done by a great scholar and one who treats the subject without prejudice. -- Bernard Knox * New York Review of Books * Halliwell, Masterson and Robson have provided a welcome gift to the academic community. Their re-edition of Greek Homosexuality offers to senior scholars a stimulating reading, while it presents to younger students an exemplary book that shows how scientific research should ideally open up new frontiers, leaving at the same time space for further questions, debates and theorisations. This is an iconic book indeed, one that not just concerns historical phenomena, but which is a story in itself, a historiographical milestone. * The Classical Review * Dover's text merits re-reading not just for its masterly synthesis of a wide range of evidence and as a starting point for this rich area of scholarship, but also for the balance he achieves in his discussions of male same-sex relationships. ... [T]he picture he paints of sexual relationships is arguably more rounded and human than any subsequent scholar has achieved. * ARGO: A Hellenic Review * [A] welcome republication of the second edition (1989) of the late Kenneth Dover's `landmark' study. * Classics For All Reviews * Dover's book has aged remarkably well. The clarity and simplicity of the prose (what else would one expect from the leading scholar on Lysias) ensures that there are few flourishes or ornaments to date the text. The range of material discussed continues to impress. * Classics Ireland *

Author Information

Sir Kenneth Dover was Professor of Greek at the University of St. Andrews and former President of Corpus Christi College, University of Oxford, UK. He published widely on ancient Greek writers, language and sexuality. Stephen Halliwell is Professor of Greek and Wardlaw Professor of Classics at the University of St Andrews, UK. Mark Masterson is Senior Lecturer in the School of Art History, Classics and Religious Studies, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. James Robson is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Classical Studies at the Open University, UK.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions