The Modern Scholar

History of Ancient Greece

By: Eric H. Cline

Narrated by: Eric H. Cline

Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

In this intriguing series of lectures, prolific researcher, author, and George Washington University professor Eric H. Cline delves into the history of ancient Greece, frequently considered to be the founding nation of democracy in Western civilization. From the Minoans to the Mycenaeans to the Trojan War and the first Olympics, the history of this remarkable civilization abounds with momentous events and cultural landmarks that resonate through the millennia.

Ancient Greece, indeed, lives on in modern culture, evidenced by an ever-present fascination with the tales of Homer, Greek drama, and the spectacular stories associated with Greek mythology. In the rise of Sparta and Athens, and the origins of democracy in Greek society, people today find a wealth of relevant material for understanding not only ancient Greece, but the modern world. And there is no greater fount of learning than that supplied by the immortal philosophers of Greece: Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2007 Eric H. Cline (P)2007 Recorded Books, LLC

A good survey : listenable , but a bit light...

If you've a vague or no idea of the ancient Greek history and you'd like to know the big picture , this book is for you. The history is presented with clarity and it is easy to follow. However for more knowledgeable readers this is far too light , i.e more an high school book than a source for more academic information. The author goes trough smoothly major events and anecdotes without really trying to raise and discuss more interesting issues that go behind battles and kings.

Well summarized history of Ancient Greece.

This audio book may serve as an introduction or review of the titled topic. Professor Cline is very easy to follow. I highly recommend this audiobook.

Great overview

After listening to this course I feel that I have a pretty good understanding of the names, times and places related to the history of the Ancient Greece. It would be true to say that my knowledge remains shallow but then there are other books and courses to go deep. This course was the first on the subject and I think it was a good start.

Eric Cline is always entertaining and to the point

I wish it was longer! Somehow, he seems to have gotten all of the high points of Greek History into this audiobook. Like all of Cline’s lectures/books, this is highly re-listenable!

Greek History

I listened to the lectures happily enough. They are affably and intelligently presented, though not particularly incisive. As an introduction to the Greeks, they do fine.

whoops!

Any additional comments?

In lecture on Homer and the Trojan War Professor Cline repeatedly says Alexander where he is speaking of Paris. Editorial support is needed methinks; otherwise great stuff.

Had promise

The lecture had great promise and I had hoped to enjoy it as much as I had the Modern Scholar lecture on Rome (which was excellent); however, this was not the case. Although deep with facts and interesting (due to the subject matter), there is a clear Christian bias throughout that pollutes the entire lecture and empties it of any credibility. Obviously Christianity is a huge part of the time period but should not have been given any more creedence than was given the Roman or Greek religions in their lectures. Unfortunately it was and this contaminates the descriptions of events, which events were more important than others and the motivations of many of the players. Very unprofessionally done IMHO due to this one glaring error. Too bad really. I do NOT recommend anyone waste their time with this but PLEASE do explore the many other Modern Scholar selections as the others I've tried have been excellent.

Excellent survey

This is a perfectly-pitched survey of Ancient Greece. If you're like me, you know the vague outlines of Greek history, but wanted to know more of the details. If so, this will be an excellent series of lectures for you: the lecturer gives you a solid outline of the historical facts, covering a bit of social history and philosophy along with the stories of the kings and warrriors, and he organizes it well, with summaries at the end to remind you of what you've learned. He never condescends, speaking briskly and packing lots of information into each short lecture.

By the way, the reviewer who says there is 'too much Christianity' in these lectures must be reviewing some other audiobook by mistake - there is no mention of Christianity at all in this one.

Great content, clunky lecture

This is a solid overview of Ancient Greece. The lecturer is a bit awkward, but in a harmless, even endearing way. If you know little or nothing about Greek history, I recommend this course highly.

Great Survey of Ancient Greece!

Professor Cline knows his material! If you want to get a big picture look at Ancient Greece and its significance in world history, I highly recommend this series.