Arlene W. Saxonhouse, "Athenian Democracy: Modern Mythmakers and Ancient Theorists" (U Notre Dame Press, 2026)

About this episode

Arlene W. Saxonhouse discusses her book on Athenian democracy, exploring ancient theorists and modern interpretations.

Athenian Democracy provides innovative readings of ancient theorists to reveal both the complexity of democracy's achievements and its limits. In Athenian Democracy: Modern Mythmakers and Ancient Theorists (U Notre Dame Press, 2026), noted political scientist Arlene W. Saxonhouse offers fresh and provocative explorations of ancient political theorists, lending new insights about democracy's foundations and principles. These insights are more relevant than ever in a moment when the viability of democratic regimes is under scrutiny. Saxonhouse provides an in-depth discussion of the modern mythmakers (Hobbes, Paine, Hamilton, Mill, and Arendt, among others) who, in praising or excoriating Athenian democracy, have in fact distorted it to support their own assessments of democracy. She then offers detailed reinterpretations of the writings on democracy of four ancient theorists who had directly experienced life in the first democratic regime: Herodotus, Thucydides, Plato, and Aristotle. Saxonhouse argues that the mythmaking that often attends our views of Athenian democracy—whether as a flawed, slaveholding regime that fostered factions and oppressed women or as an ideal regime of…

People in this episode

Guest: Arlene W. Saxonhouse

Topics covered

• Athenian democracy
• political theory
• mythmaking
• ancient theorists
• democratic regimes
• political science

Keywords

• Athenian democracy
• political theorists
• democracy
• mythmakers
• Hobbes
• Paine
• Hamilton
• Mill
• Arendt

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: University of Notre Dame Press, University of Michigan

Books & works: Athenian Democracy: Modern Mythmakers and Ancient Theorists

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