Slaves And Other Objects

Page duBois a classicist known for her daring and originality turns in thisnew book to one of the most troubling subjects in the study of antiquity theindispens... » 

Page duBois a classicist known for her daring and originality turns in thisnew book to one of the most troubling subjects in the study of antiquity theindispensability of slaves in ancient Greece. DuBois argues that every objectand text in the world of ancient Greece bears the marks of slavery and the needto reiterate the distinction between slave and free. And yet the ubiquity ofslaves in ancient societies has been overlooked by scholars who idealizeantiquity misconstrued by those who view slavery through the lens of race andobscured by the split between historical and philological approaches to theclassics.DuBois begins her study by exploring the material culture of slavery includinghow most museum exhibits erase the presence of slaves in the classical world.Shifting her focus to literature she considers the place of slaves in PlatosMeno Aristotles Politics Aesops Fables Aristophanes Wasps andEuripides Orestes. She contends throughout that portraying the differencebetween slave and free as natural was pivotal to Greek concepts of selfhood andpolitical freedom and that scholars who idealize such concepts too often failto recognize the role that slavery played in their articulation.Opening new lines of inquiry into ancient culture Slaves and Other Objectswill enlighten classicists and historians alike. «