Lucia Cecchet
Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Ancient History, Faculty Member
- Ancient Greek History, Historiography Greek Classical period, Classical Greek Literature, Attic Orators, Social History, Ancient History, and 11 moreHistory, Classics, Roman History, Late Antiquity, Greek Epigraphy, Ancient economies (Archaeology), Reception Studies, Classics: Ancient History and Archaeology, Greek Law, Citizenship studies, and Multiple citizenshipedit
While previous research has focused on the public discourse of wealth, little attention has thus far been paid to the perception of poverty and attitudes toward it in classical Athens. This book argues that a public discourse of poverty... more
While previous research has focused on the public discourse of wealth, little attention has thus far been paid to the perception of poverty and attitudes toward it in classical Athens. This book argues that a public discourse of poverty in Athens can be reconstructed from sources dating from the 430s to the 330s BC. Athenian democracy promoted ideas about poverty that could substantially contribute to the stability of the political system, while simultaneously differentiating between destitution and "good poverty" – the latter being a legitimate condition for a citizen and beneficial to the polis. After a preliminary discussion of the debate over the definition of poverty in the social sciences, Lucia Cecchet explores the web of beliefs and the collective imaginary of poverty that emerge from classical Athenian sources addressed to large audiences: drama and oratory. The frequency with which images and ideas about "the poor" occur in these sources testifies to an ongoing discussion of the causes and effects of poverty and even possible solutions to this social problem. These sources allow us to investigate how these topics were used in drama, in the Assembly and in the jury courts to arouse emotions and influence public decisions.
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This article discusses the way the ancient Greeks dealt with public and private debts, focusing on one specific aspect: debt cancellation. On the one hand, ancient Greeks were aware of the risks entailed in debt relief as a tool for... more
This article discusses the way the ancient Greeks dealt with public and private debts, focusing on one specific aspect: debt cancellation. On the one hand, ancient Greeks were aware of the risks entailed in debt relief as a tool for fuelling civic strife: sources describe it as a demagogic or even criminal action often in association with the political agenda of tyrants. On the other hand, however, Greeks knew well also the benefic effects of debt cancellation in coping with financial and political crisis. In late accounts of archaic history, debt relief is the solution to civic strife and the foundation act of political order. Some public decrees of the Hellenistic period attest debt relief as a communal decision of the polis, dictated by the necessity of preventing or solving ongoing or imminent crises. This second meaning and purpose of debt cancellation should perhaps urge us to reconsider from a different perspective the “politics of debt” in today’s Europe.
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This essay discusses the problem of the origin and use of the Athenian nomos argias. The law was probably part of the archaic agrarian legislation and it originally concerned inheritance and family rights. However, over the course of the... more
This essay discusses the problem of the origin and use of the Athenian nomos argias. The law was probably part of the archaic agrarian legislation and it originally concerned inheritance and family rights. However, over the course of the classical period, it broadened its field of application, becoming a law against unemployment and begging.
argia – inactivity – agrarian legislation – unemployment – criminality - poverty
argia – inactivity – agrarian legislation – unemployment – criminality - poverty
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En los últimos años, el fenómeno de la pobreza ha comenzado a captar un interés cada vez mayor por parte de los estudiosos de la Antigüedad. En el caso de los helenistas, esta renovada atención por la temática se aprecia en un notable... more
En los últimos años, el fenómeno de la pobreza ha comenzado a captar un interés cada vez mayor por parte de los estudiosos de la Antigüedad. En el caso de los helenistas, esta renovada atención por la temática se aprecia en un notable incremento de las publicaciones al respecto, así como en una clara tendencia a considerar la pobreza como un objeto de estudio propiamente dicho. Este es el contexto en el que, en 2015, vería la luz la obra que nos ocupa, resultado de la tesis doctoral defendida por la misma autora en 2012 (Università di Trento y Ruprecht-Karls-Universität de Heidelberg), bajo el título: Poverty and Beggary in Ancient Greece (800-330 B.C.): Perception, Identity and Social Reality. Como puede deducirse del encabezamiento anterior, en la investigación original se abordaría la problemática de la pobreza en la antigua Grecia desde una visión relativamente "amplia" o "global"; sin embargo, en la presente monografía, el foco de atención está puesto sobre una dimensión concreta del fenómeno: el discurso público de la pobreza y su relación con la percepción y actitudes hacia aquella en la Atenas clásica. Se trata este de un aspecto que, como la propia autora señala, si bien ha sido bastante trabajado con relación a la riqueza, ha resultado, en cambio, relativamente descuidado para la pobreza. En opinión de Lucia Cecchet, en la citada polis, el régimen democrático habría favorecido la cristalización de determinadas ideas en torno a aquella (como la concepción de una pobreza "buena" o "positiva", conectada con el ideal ciudadano ateniense), con la firme intención de dotar de una mayor estabilidad al sistema político.
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The twelve studies contained in this volume discuss some key-aspects of citizenship from its emergence in Archaic Greece until the Roman period before AD 212, when Roman citizenship was extended to (almost) all the free inhabitants of the... more
The twelve studies contained in this volume discuss some key-aspects of citizenship from its emergence in Archaic Greece until the Roman period before AD 212, when Roman citizenship was extended to (almost) all the free inhabitants of the Empire. The book explores the processes of formation and re-formation of citizen bodies, the integration of foreigners, the question of multiple-citizenship holders and the political and philosophical thought on ancient citizenship. The aim is that of offering a multidisciplinary approach to the subject, ranging from literature to history and philosophy, as well as encouraging the reader to integrate the traditional institutional and legalistic approach to citizenship with a broader perspective, which encompasses aspects such as identity formation, performative aspect and discourse of citizenship.