Based on the author's 1949 lectures at Berkeley. It is the intellectual passion to seek understanding of the Other that leads to the questioning of "Greek culture is the victory of reason". The old and new beliefs that do not contradict each other signify that the age of perfect reason is still to come, and the Inherited Conglomerate (layered accumulation) of ancient Greek religion has been preserved. The author's mention of Freud's subconscious theory is very interesting. The whole book is clear and classical.

12/1/22

While Ancient Greeks are most known for the triumph of rationalism over superstition and magic, E.R. Dodds presents an alternate history which demonstrates that, despite the intellectual advancements in the direction of reason, the Greeks (particularly Plato) of the Golden Age fundamentally retained certain pre-5th century magical (read: irrational) thinking within their traditions. Dodds thinks this is a good thing, since we are not merely thinking but also *feeling* agents--a fact that Socrates and Aristotle understood well. Dodds argues that the progressive excision of "irrationality" in the Stoic and Epicurean traditions turns out to be a regression--a failure to appreciate the affective elements of living a human life. He sees this failure culminate in medieval Christianity's devaluation of earthly life.

This book is essential and utterly fascinating. Because it was first delivered as a series of lectures (each chapter is relatively short--approx 15-20 pages), it is eminently digestible and suitable for any audience. But boy, does he pack a lot of detail in: on average there are about 100 footnotes a chapter. This makes this a great bibliographical source in addition to being a spectacular read. ( )

Despite being first published in 1951 and considering all of the advances in anthropology, psychology and our knowledge of Greek civilisation, Dodds' book still holds its place as an important understanding of the Greek mind and civilisation. It was hugely controversial when it was published and still has that tag.

However, to my mind there are only three chapters worth reading: Agamemnon's Apology, Guilt Culture to Shame Culture and Reactions to Rationalism. There is only so much one can say about irrationalism in Greek culture and the other chapters feel as if they were filler. ( )

Another necessary corrective to the historiography of Western civilization. The view since at least the 17th c. of a distinctive Western civilization marked by rationalism counted on an autochthonous, rational, classical Greek foundation.

Dodds—drawing on the works of Homer through to the last pagan neoplatonists—points out that the Greeks themselves were careful not to neglect the superstitious, the impulsive, or the reactionary in human experience and behavior. And, Greek thought exhibited too many congruencies with Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Persian, and Brahman mentalities to support later interpretations of an ancient East-West divide.

First appearing in lecture form in 1949, The Greeks and the Irrational is a pleasure to read (because of the original lecture form, or despite the lecture form, I can’t decide), and one need not be a devotee of Ancient History to find much worthwhile in the discussion here. For those wanting to go further, the chapter notes constitute a rich and instructive bibliographical essay in their own right.