Chapter 11 ‘The Relevance of Relevance’: Trends in Higher Education and the Legacy of Greek Political Thought in England and the USA, 1900–1970

In: Brill's Companion to the Legacy of Greek Political Thought
Author:
Liz Sawyer
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Type:
Chapter
Pages:
312–334
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004679344_013

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Abstract

Higher education systems in the USA and England took very different approaches to the teaching of Greek political thought in the twentieth century. In the USA, an early switch towards making the classical thinkers accessible to a broad student audience through translations, instigated by changes made by John Erskine at Columbia, meant that the modern ‘relevance’ of the ancient work was emphasised at the expense of obscuring the text’s complexity and the historical differences. In England, there was great resistance towards removing the requirement for texts to be read in their original language, with the result that such authors were only read by an ever dwindling minority and became associated with elitism and exclusivity, and were therefore hardly ever used in political discourse engaging the wider public.

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Series:  Brill's Companions to Philosophy: Ancient Philosophy, Volume: 8 and  Brill's Companions to Philosophy, Volume: 8
Cover Brill's Companion to the Legacy of Greek Political Thought
E-Book ISBN:
9789004679344
Publisher:
Brill
Print Publication Date:
16 Sep 2024
Front Matter
Introduction
Part 1 The Reproduction of Greek Political Thought
Part 2 Greek Thought in New Environments
Part 3 Variation and Adaptation
Part 4 Greek Thought and the Potential for Dissent
Back Matter

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