The ancient Greeks invented written law. Yet, in contrast to later societies in which law became a professional discipline, the Greeks treated laws as components of social and political history, reflecting the daily realities of managing society. To understand Greek law, then, requires looking into extant legal, forensic, and historical texts for evidence of the law in action. From such study has arisen the field of ancient Greek law as a scholarly discipline within classical studies, a field that has come into its own since the 1970s.

This edited volume charts new directions for the study of Greek law in the twenty-first century through contributions from eleven leading scholars. The essays in the book's first section reassess some of the central debates in the field by looking at questions about the role of law in society, the notion of "contracts," feuding and revenge in the court system, and legal protections for slaves engaged in commerce. The second section breaks new ground by redefining substantive areas of law such as administrative law and sacred law, as well as by examining sources such as Hellenistic inscriptions that have been comparatively neglected in recent scholarship. The third section evaluates the potential of methodological approaches to the study of Greek law, including comparative studies with other cultures and with modern legal theory. The volume ends with an essay that explores pedagogy and the relevance of teaching Greek law in the twenty-first century.

About the Author

Paula Perlman is a professor of classics at the University of Texas at Austin. Her books are The Laws of Ancient Crete, c.650-400 BCE, coauthored with Michael Gagarin, and City and Sanctuary in Ancient Greece: The Theorodokia in the Peloponnese.

Reviews
As a whole, the volume provides a succinct and learned overview of modern thinking on issues that have been debated since the subject flourished in the 1970s, and includes some convincing and innovative readings...the volume will be a great resource for students, established scholars, and indeed teachers of Greek law. * Bryn Mawr Classical Review *
[Ancient Greek Law in the 21st Century] is a miscellany, as it is intended to be. The only real unifying theme is the diversity of approaches and directions that modern scholars can take in approaching ancient Greek law. In this, the book's stated aim, it is successful. I found the contributions stimulating, and the work as a whole offers exciting promises to both new and established scholars for groundbreaking work that remains to be done. * American Historical Review *
Perlman's new volume...seeks to guide the direction of [the study of ancient Greek law] in the 21st century. Although each contribution is concerned with a different topic, they all provide a critical analysis of problems in the scholarship and offer solutions for them...[Ancient Greek Law in the 21st Century] has universal value for scholars dealing with modern legal problems. * Alternative Law Journal *



Book Information
ISBN 9781477315217
Author Paula Perlman
Format Hardback
Page Count 240
Imprint University of Texas Press
Publisher University of Texas Press
Weight(grams) 513g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 25mm