Ancient Greek Classics

There was once a time, nearly four thousand years ago, when the tall towers of a city called Troy reached gleaming into the sky; when its proud king fought against an invading army in a desperate siege.

Plutarch’s series of biographies was the first of its kind, as much ground breaking in conception as Herodotus was with his Histories. Plutarch looked at the great men of the Ancient World and told their stories, in many cases drawing on sources no longer available to us. They offer a unique insight into the characters as well as the achievements of men who influenced their age and the empires that their culture dominated. They are as accessible now as they were when they were first written.is the companion volume to Roman Lives.

This audiobook on Greek mythology will take you on a captivating journey, so you can experience the enjoyment of the entertaining stories while also learning about the Greek myths that lie at the roots of Western language, culture, and civilization. Explore the captivating myths of the Greek gods and heroes.

Meditations is former US President Bill Clinton's favorite book. This audio consists of a series of personal writings by Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor AD 161-180, setting forth his ideas on Stoic philosophy.

Politics is the second half of a single treatise by Aristotle (384 B.C.E - 322 B.C.E.), Ethics being the first. Both deal with one and the same subject: what Aristotle calls the philosophy of human affairs. He also refers to it as political science and social science. Aristotle collected and studied the constitutions of over 150 city states before writing his Politics.

Olympus is the home of the Greek gods, much like Amravati of the Hindu devas. Zeus, leader of Olympians, wields a thunderbolt like Indra and rides an eagle like Vishnu. The feats of the Greek hero Heracles, known to Romans as Hercules, reminded many of Krishna, as did his name...

Epaminondas was known better for his way with words than his way with a sword. He used his wits on the battlefield to lead armies and took the honor of himself and his men most seriously. Nepos here admires the Theban orator who could out-speak any Athenian.

The story of Orpheus and Eurydice is the ultimate tragic love story. It is perhaps one of the most famous Greek myths, and the greatest artists have composed masterpieces to honour these two great lovers who lost their chance at reunion. The earliest account comes from Ibycus (circa 530 BC), a Greek lyric poet. This short story is a mixture of the various existing versions, presenting the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice in all its details, all the way to Orpheus' death at the hands of the Bacchantes.

Caligula’s father was a beloved military leader, so the Romans were initially glad to see his son take the throne, but Suetonius recounts the less flattering aspects of Caligula’s life and rule that followed his ascension. The narcissistic Caligula believed he was a god, and often replaced the busts of deities with his own. A devoted fan of gladiator fights, he also often had people assassinated, covered up the deed, and then claimed the deceased had committed suicide. Suetonius concludes this biography by detailing the omens that foreshadowed Caligula’s eventual assassination.

A novel in The L.A. Quartet. Internationally acclaimed author James Ellroy presents another literary noir masterpiece of historical paranoia. Los Angeles, 1958. Killings, beatings, bribes, shakedowns—it's standard procedure for Lieutenant Dave Klein, LAPD. He's a slumlord, a bagman, an...

The Phaedrus by Plato, is a dialogue between Plato's protagonist, Socrates, and Phaedrus, an interlocutor in several dialogues. It was probably written around 370 BC, at about the same time as Plato's Republic and Symposium. Ostensibly about love, the discussion in the dialogue focuses on the art of rhetoric and how it ought to be practiced. The dialogue appears in the direct words of Socrates and Phaedrus, without an introduction.

The Adventures of Odysseus is the story of what happened after the Trojan War when Odysseus, the most cunning of all the Greek heroes, left Troy and made his way back home to his wife Penelope and his son Telemachus. It was first told by a poet named Homer nearly 3,000 years ago and is retold in this new version especially for younger listeners.

This small handbook of the theory and practice of Stoic philosophy has become one of the most influential of all texts from the ancient world. It has been a source of inspiration to rulers, philosophers, and social theorists, and its cogent prescriptions about the management of one's personal life can be applied with great benefit in the hectic and confused world of today.

The myth of King Midas is a cautionary tale about the dangers of believing that gold should be coveted above all things, and the foolishness of wishing without thinking. It appeared in Ovid's "Metamorphosis", and has inspired many works of art and literature through the centuries. This is a retelling of the complete tale of "The King with the Golden Touch", from the Gordian knot to the ears of an ass, in great detail and with an elegant style that will edify children and adults alike.

Phaeton is the son of Apollo and a mortal woman, and his heart's desire is to be seen but once driving his father's chariot, the one used by the god to make the sun travel in the sky. This myth is an ageless story of failure at the hands of pride, similar to that of Icarus. It is a fundamental part of Greek mythology and of modern culture. This short story is a retelling of the myth in great detail and with an elegant style that will edify children and adults alike.

The myth of Icarus is an ageless story of failure at the hands of pride, similar to that of Phaeton. It is a fundamental part of Greek mythology and of modern culture. This short story is a retelling of the myth from 1914, a year in which it was easy to fear for a son who would soar in the sky with metal wings; the story of Icarus and Daedalus is told in great detail and with an elegant style that will edify children and adults alike.

"The Death of Adonis" is a fundamental part of Greek mythology and one of its most touching stories. Accidentally wounded by one of Eros' arrows, the goddess Aphrodite falls desperately in love with the handsome Adonis, son of a king and a beauty among mortals. Yet his only passion is hunting and he refuses to take her warnings seriously when he hears about a great boar he would love to slay. There is something of the idea of coming of age in this tale, when the moment of realisation brings forth the understanding of what could have been and where the real beauty lays.

Ein Drama ist entweder eine Tragödie oder eine Komödie. Und alle anderen allgemein bekannten Genres sind Ableitungen bzw. Variationen der genannten zwei Hauptformen. Die "Poetik" von Aristoteles bildet bis zum heutigen Tag den Muttertext für unser Verständnis von Theater. Obligatorisches Wissen für jeden Theater-Kritiker und der Ausgangspunkt unserer Vorstellung bzw. deren Definitionen über notwendige Formen innerhalb von Geschichten.

Nepos explores the life of Chabrias, a man as mercenary as he was brave. He would develop new methods of fighting that caused enemies to flee before him and be brought on by foreign kings to fight their wars. Eventually, he would lose his life as he lived it, choosing to die rather than flee in battle.

Iphicrates was one of the first truly respect military tacticians in the ancient world. His skillful planning for battle was respected even by enemies, and he is one of the few Greek generals who managed to live a good life. Brought not too high or low by fate or fortune, his life is an interesting dive into how skill and dedication can pay off in any time.