Browse our books below. You can also search for books.
THOMSON, G., Aeschylus and Athens. A Study in the Social Origins of Drama. Lawrence & Wishart, London, 1941. XII,476p. Cloth wrps. Gilt titling on spine. Wrps little bit worn and bit discoloured.'Professor George Thomson, and all who are accustomed to await with keen expectation the appearance of new work by him, are to be congratulated on the success and on the speed with which his 'Aeschylus and Athens' has been published, in spite of the war, and in particular enemy action which destroyed the sheets of the book while it was in the press. There are no visible marks of this adventure now. Production, printing, and proof-reading are excellent. The matter of the book commands attention for many qualities. (…) With courage and a certain intuition for the right associations of the facts of cult, Professor Thomson has endeavored to turn diversity into unity, and has given a coherent account which cleverly covers a great number of facts, many adduced now for the first time in this connexion. His detailed interpretation of the extant plays (…) can be exquisite. Some of his short reconstructions of political and economic history (…) are most acute. He is a very good interpreter of Aristotle, whom he trusts with a well-reasoned faith. The danger is that the book may be judged with prejudice. (…) Certainly, Professor Thomson writes as a convinced Marxist. To many of us the materialistic interpretation of history is suspicious (…). Professor Thomson is, of course, entirely and profoundly sincere. His Marxism, like the Marxism of most cultures British Marxists, springs from impatience with human fallibility, and deep sympathy with human suffering. Whether he will receive fair credit is uncertain.' (WILLIAM FRANCIS JACKSON KNIGHT. in Greece & Rome, 1941, p.46). € 18.50 (Antiquarian)