The Long Shadow of Antiquity - by Gregory S Aldrete & Alicia Aldrete

About the Book

"Why, in the 21st century, should we still care about the ancient world? This book provides an answer by revealing the myriad and often surprising ways in which society today has been fundamentally shaped by the ancient Greeks and Romans. Often the phrase 'That's just ancient history' is used to dismiss something as being irrelevant. This book challenges this assumption by vividly demonstrating how much ancient Greece and Rome have influenced and shaped our world today in ways both large and small. This revised, expanded edition includes timely new material on environmental challenges, celebrity culture, tensions between globalism and nationalism, and political propaganda"--

Book Synopsis

A vivid exploration of the many ways the classical world remains relevant today, this is a passionate justification of why we continue to read about and study the lives and works of the ancient Greeks and Romans.

Challenging the way the phrase 'That's just ancient history' is used to dismiss something as being irrelevant, Greg and Alicia Aldrete demonstrate just how much ancient Greece and Rome have influenced and shaped our world today in ways both large and small. From the more commonly known influences on politics, law, literature and timekeeping through to the everyday rituals and routines we take for granted when we exercise, dine, marry and dress, we are rooted in the ancient world. Even the political upheaval, celebrity obsession and blurring of public and private boundaries that we see in current news betray ancient characteristics - now brought to the fore here in a new final chapter.

If you have ever wondered how far exactly we still walk in the footsteps of the ancients or wanted to understand how study of the classical world can inform and explain our lives today, this is the book for you.

About the Author

Gregory S. Aldrete is Professor of History and Humanistic Studies at the University of Wisconsin - Green Bay, USA. His publications include Daily Life in the Roman City (2008) and Floods of the Tiber in Ancient Rome (2007) and he is a popular author of video courses for The Teaching Company/The Great Courses. A course tying in with The Long Shadow of Antiquity is planned for 2019.

Alicia Aldrete has advanced degrees from Princeton and the University of Michigan. She is the co-author with Gregory of Reconstructing and Testing Ancient Linen Armor (2013).