1st Edition

Handbook for Classical Research

By David Schaps Copyright 2011
    488 Pages
    by Routledge

    488 Pages
    by Routledge

    One of the glories of the Greco-Roman classics is the opportunity that they give us to consider a great culture in its entirety; but our ability to do that depends on our ability to work comfortably with very varied fields of scholarship. The Handbook for Classical Research offers guidance to students needing to learn more about the different fields and subfields of classical research, and its methods and resources.

    The book is divided into 7 parts: The Basics, Language, The Traditional Fields, The Physical Remains, The Written Word, The Classics and Related Disciplines, The Classics since Antiquity. Topics covered range from history and literature, lexicography and linguistics, epigraphy and palaeography, to archaeology and numismatics, and the study and reception of the classics.

    Guidance is given not only to read, for example, an archaeological or papyrological report, but also on how to find such sources when they are relevant to research. Concentrating on "how-to" topics, the Handbook for Classical Research is a much needed resource for both teachers and students.

    Part 1: The Basics  1. The Nature of the Field  2. The Stages of Research  3. Assembling a Bibliography  4. What are your Sources?  5. Book Reviews  Part 2: Language  6. Lexicography  7. Grammar  8. Language and Linguistics  9. Using Classical Texts  Part 3: The Traditional Fields  10. Reading and Understanding Literature  11. Oratory and Rhetoric  12. Philosophy  13. History  Part 4: The Physical Remains  14. Archaeology  15. Mycenaean Studies  16. Numismatics  Part 5: The Written Word  17. Epigraphy  18. Papyrology  19. Palaeography  20. Editing Classical Texts  Part 5: The Classics and Related Disciplines  21. Art  22. Music and Dance  23. Science and Technology  24. Ancient Religion and Mythology  25. Law  26. Sociology, Anthropology, Economics and Psychology  Part 7: The Classics Since Antiquity  27. The Classical Tradition and Classical Reception  28. History of Classical Scholarship  Chapter 29. Reconstructing the Ancient World  30. Translation  

    Biography

    David Schaps

    'Many sections represent the sort of avuncular guidance one might expect from a thesis advisor, with helpful summaries such as "How Laws Were Made in Ancient Rome" and "Reading a Published Papyrus." Libraries will have a hard time deciding whether this handbook belongs in the reference collection, on reserve as a course textbook, or as part of the circulating collection. Institutions supporting programs in classical studies may want copies in all three locations. Summing Up: Essential. Undergraduate classics majors, graduate students, and faculty/researchers.' Choice

    "Schaps has written a remarkable book ...there is something in here to benefit anybody, from beginners to seasoned researchers... [it] is truly a guidebook, as his desire is to produce "an orientation" (xiv) that will lay out the basics of a given field and then point people to the right resources for further study… this book thus represents a significant achievement, one that will likely find a regular place on researchers’ shelves and in graduate seminars for years to come." Mark Thorne, Bryn Mawr Classical Review