Xenophon's Spartan Constitution: Introduction. Text. Commentary

Description

This work presents a new critical edition of The Spartan Constitution, a treatise in state philosophy attributed to the historian Xenophon (c. 430 - c. 355 B. C.). The Greek text, reconstructed on the basis of extant manuscript sources, is prefaced by an introduction and supplemented by a critical commentary and an English translation. The introduction discusses the problem of the text's authenticity and dating and provides a comprehensive account of its sources, reception, language, style and structure as well as an analysis of the manuscript sources and the textual tradition. The commentary addresses linguistic as well as historical problems. INTRODUCTION I Xenophon’s Life II Authorship III Date IV Predecessors and Influences V Composition VI Purpose and audience VII Historicity VIII Reception IX Structure X Language XI Style XII Text SIGLORUM CONSPECTUS TEXT AND TRANSLATION COMMENTARY APPENDIXES Appendix I: Spartan marriage Appendix II: The seizure of cheese from the altar of Orthia in Xenophon and the ‘diamastigosis’ of the later sources Appendix III: The structure of the Spartan army according to Xenophon and Thucydides FIGURES BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEXES