What do you think?
Rate this book
A Short History of Greek Literature
Offers profiles of ancient Greek writers, including Homer, Hesiod, Herodotus, Sophocles, Plato, Aristotle, and Plutarch, and traces the development of Greek literature
- GenresHistory
308 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1980
4 people are currently reading
71 people want to read
About the author
Jacqueline de Romilly
94 books38 followersJacqueline Worms de Romilly (March 26, 1913-December 18, 2010) was a French philologist, Classical scholar and writer of fiction of Jewish ancestry.
Born in Chartres, Eure-et-Loir, she studied at the lycée Molière, where she was the winner of the Concours général de latin and took the second prize in Greek in 1930. She then prepared for the École Normale Supérieure at the lycée Louis-le-Grand. She entered ENS Ulm in the class of 1933. She then passed the agrégation of Classics in 1936, and became a doctor of letters in 1947.
After having taught for some time in a school, she became a professor first at the University of Lille and subsequently at the Sorbonne (from 1957 to 1973). She was then elevated to the chair of Greek and the development of moral and political thought at the Collège de France — the first woman nominated to this prestigious institution. In 1988, she was the second woman (after Marguerite Yourcenar) to enter the Académie française, being elected to Chair #7, previously occupied by André Roussin. In 1995, she obtained Greek nationality and in 2000 was nominated Ambassador of Hellenism by the Greek government.
She was at one time president of the Association Guillaume Budé, and remains the honorary president of that institution.
Born in Chartres, Eure-et-Loir, she studied at the lycée Molière, where she was the winner of the Concours général de latin and took the second prize in Greek in 1930. She then prepared for the École Normale Supérieure at the lycée Louis-le-Grand. She entered ENS Ulm in the class of 1933. She then passed the agrégation of Classics in 1936, and became a doctor of letters in 1947.
After having taught for some time in a school, she became a professor first at the University of Lille and subsequently at the Sorbonne (from 1957 to 1973). She was then elevated to the chair of Greek and the development of moral and political thought at the Collège de France — the first woman nominated to this prestigious institution. In 1988, she was the second woman (after Marguerite Yourcenar) to enter the Académie française, being elected to Chair #7, previously occupied by André Roussin. In 1995, she obtained Greek nationality and in 2000 was nominated Ambassador of Hellenism by the Greek government.
She was at one time president of the Association Guillaume Budé, and remains the honorary president of that institution.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 10, 2022
Никад се нисмо договорили да ли волим "прегледе" књижевности или не.
Verovatno da, kada imate blizu 100 godina (a predmet kojim se bavite blizu 3000 godina), samo "pregledi" i dolaze u obzir.
Lepo podeljena, povrsno obradjena, a u nas kod Karposa 2016. izdata - starogrcka knjizevnost opet uspeva da dodje do onih najneupucenijih i najneposvecenijih.
Za njih je ovaj pregled i napisan.
Verovatno da, kada imate blizu 100 godina (a predmet kojim se bavite blizu 3000 godina), samo "pregledi" i dolaze u obzir.
Lepo podeljena, povrsno obradjena, a u nas kod Karposa 2016. izdata - starogrcka knjizevnost opet uspeva da dodje do onih najneupucenijih i najneposvecenijih.
Za njih je ovaj pregled i napisan.
January 26, 2022
É uma excelente base teórica para quem quer conhecer superficialmente a evolução da literatura grega, desde Homero até à Época Helenística. A autora tem também estudos aprofundados sobre os poemas homéricos ou a tragédia grega.
Sem sombra de dúvidas uma autora de referência nos estudos literários da Grécia antiga. Para complementar conhecimentos mais relacionados com a religião e mundividencias recomendo autores como Jean Pierre Vernant ou Pierre Vidal-Naquet.
Sem sombra de dúvidas uma autora de referência nos estudos literários da Grécia antiga. Para complementar conhecimentos mais relacionados com a religião e mundividencias recomendo autores como Jean Pierre Vernant ou Pierre Vidal-Naquet.
November 7, 2016
A condensed version of all I need to know, for a good start into the history of Ancient Greece.
August 24, 2023
Ugh... this is a scholastic book.
For example, I'm still not at the point of have read Homer's work in ancient Greek. Let alone I cannot tell the difference between misspellings in Ionic and Aonic Greek....things like that that makes this read heavy.
I would have enjoyed it more if I read along with the original classic. Or at least right after finishing them. Mrs Romilly is a well respected scholar, so this book is almost a MUST READ... but you gotta be prepared, intellectually.
...in my pending list...DNF [for now]
For example, I'm still not at the point of have read Homer's work in ancient Greek. Let alone I cannot tell the difference between misspellings in Ionic and Aonic Greek....things like that that makes this read heavy.
I would have enjoyed it more if I read along with the original classic. Or at least right after finishing them. Mrs Romilly is a well respected scholar, so this book is almost a MUST READ... but you gotta be prepared, intellectually.
...in my pending list...DNF [for now]
October 14, 2024
J'avais un peu envie de dormir sometimes mais j'ai appris plein de chose et les œuvres sont bien mises dans leur contexte historique
August 12, 2010
I highly recommend this book. Written in a nice flowing style, Romilly takes you through everything you need to know about Greek literature without bogging you down with endless asides and complex jargon. On the other hand, this is not just a skimming of the surface - she gives great insight into the Greeks and explores the subject like a seasoned pro.
September 12, 2020
I only read about a third.
Rather than reading this in one go, it will probably be more useful as a reference prior to/after reading a given work - but then again, most editions (e.g. Oxfords World Classics and Penguin Classics) come with fine introductions already.
Nonetheless Romilly does tie it all together quite nicely.
Rather than reading this in one go, it will probably be more useful as a reference prior to/after reading a given work - but then again, most editions (e.g. Oxfords World Classics and Penguin Classics) come with fine introductions already.
Nonetheless Romilly does tie it all together quite nicely.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews