000			nam a22 7a 4500
999			_c29248 _d29248
008			181217b xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
020			_a9780691173146
082			_a938 _bOBE
100			_aOber, Josaih
245			_aRise and fall of classical Greece
260			_aPriceton: _bPrinceton university press, _c2015
300			_axxv, 416p. : _bill. ; _c21 cm.
365			_aUSD _b18.95
504			_aIncludes bibliographical references, index, maps, and graphs.
520			_aLord Byron described Greece as great, fallen, and immortal, a characterization more apt than he knew. Through most of its long history, Greece was poor. But in the classical era, Greece was densely populated and highly urbanized. Many surprisingly healthy Greeks lived in remarkably big houses and worked for high wages at specialized occupations. Middle-class spending drove sustained economic growth. Classical wealth produced a stunning cultural efflorescence lasting hundreds of years. Why did Greece reach such heights in the classical period--and why only then? And how, after 'the Greek miracle' had endured for centuries, did the Macedonians defeat the Greeks, seemingly bringing an end to their glory? Drawing on a massive body of newly available data and employing novel approaches to evidence, Josiah Ober offers a major new history of classical Greece and an unprecedented account of its rise and fall. Ober argues that Greece's rise was no miracle but rather the result of political breakthroughs and economic development. The extraordinary emergence of citizen-centered city-states transformed Greece into a society that defeated the mighty Persian Empire. Yet Philip and Alexander of Macedon were able to beat the Greeks in the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BCE, a victory enabled by the Macedonians' appropriation of Greek innovations. After Alexander's death, battle-hardened warlords fought ruthlessly over the remnants of his empire. But Greek cities remained populous and wealthy, their economy and culture surviving to be passed on to the Romans--and to us. A compelling narrative filled with uncanny modern parallels, this is a book for anyone interested in how great civilizations are born and die.
650			_aHistory &​ theory
650			_aEconomic history
650			_aBusiness & economics
650			_aHistory &​ surveys
650			_aAncient &​ classical
650			_aSocial change
650			_aAncient​ Greece
650			_aEconomic history
650			_aPolitics and government
650			_aPolitics and government
650			_aCivilization
650			_aGreece civilization
650			_aEconomic conditions
942			_2ddc _cBK