Book cover of Greek and Roman Political Ideas: A Pelican Introduction

Book description

Where do our ideas about politics come from?
What can we learn from the Greeks and Romans?
How should we exercise power?

Melissa Lane teaches politics at Princeton University, and previously taught political thought at the University of Cambridge, where she was a Fellow of King's College. She has received…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked Greek and Roman Political Ideas as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This excellent book is especially useful to those intrigued about the political ideas that currently dominate self-styled liberal western democracies such as the US, the UK, and Canada. Rather than lionize classical Greek or Roman history, this book instead provides nuanced narratives that are intelligible to the non-expert.

These narratives can be drawn on to understand the contested nature of the relationship between citizen and state and some of the historical roots of influential ideas such as justice, republicanism, and sovereignty.

From Robert's list on democracy and secrecy.

If you love Greek and Roman Political Ideas...

Book cover of These Blue Mountains

These Blue Mountains by Sarah Loudin Thomas,

A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.

German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…

Want books like Greek and Roman Political Ideas?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Greek and Roman Political Ideas.

Browse books like Greek and Roman Political Ideas

Book cover of All the President's Men
Book cover of The History Thieves: Secrets, Lies and the Shaping of a Modern Nation
Book cover of The Pentagon's Brain: An Uncensored History of DARPA, America's Top-Secret Military Research Agency

Share your top 3 reads of 2025!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,367

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like Greek and Roman Political Ideas, you might also like...

Book cover of Pioneer Paddles of the Colonial South

Pioneer Paddles of the Colonial South by William D. Auman,

Award-winning novelist William Auman, author of If Trees Could Testify..., takes the reader on a time-traveling odyssey featuring 345 bodies of water in six states within the historical context through which they unfold.

Journey into remaining Colonial-era wilderness with stories of pirate treasure, epic frontiersmen, Indigenous Peoples, and Revolutionary…

Book cover of A Winter's Disgrace

A Winter's Disgrace by Kathleen Buckley,

Cyprian, a marquess’s heir, will not let his mother choose his next bride. Leaving a house party in a blizzard to avoid her stratagems, he finds a woman trudging half frozen toward the London road. Rosamund fled disgrace, hoping to reach the one person who might shelter her, but even…

5 book lists we think you will like!