Although much has been written on Greek and Roman slavery in antiquity; the same cannot be said for slave resistance in this period. Slave revolts have typically been dismissed as historically insignificant or exceptional events resulting from peculiar historical circumstances. In the first in-depth work on this topic to be published in two decades; Theresa Urbainczyk challenges much current thinking by looking beyond the canonical sources to reveal a longer and far more significant history of slave resistance. Her engaging; up-to-date account considers the circumstances of these revolts; looks at slave leaders and how they are recorded in history; explores the aims of slaves; examines attitudes toward freedom and slavery; and more. Dissecting both ancient and modern sources; she finds that the writers who recorded and rerecorded these slave rebellions and wars had every reason to repress large-scale resistance or to reconfigure it as something other than what it was. Slave Revolts in Antiquity also addresses one of the most important issues of our own time: the meaning of freedom itself.Copub: Acumen Publishing Limited
#616705 in Books 2006-04-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.00 x .81 x 6.00l; .99 #File Name: 0520248112308 pages
Review
0 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy WHAT?Excellent read27 of 38 people found the following review helpful. FantasticBy pjI had to read Eric Avlia's "Popular Culture in the Age of White Flight" for a course and was dreading it. I figured that it would be a rather tiresome book pointing out racism in pop culture. Instead I found a terrific work on how race and urban vision informed the spatial construction of modern Los Angeles.As a lifelong New Yorker; I'm more than willing to have my low opinions of LA confirmed; and Eric Avila; a professor at UCLA; provides some good grist for that mill. Avila argues that the spatial construction of LA; beginning in the 30s and 40s; was informed by a vision of the city which contrasted itself consciously with what he terms "the Noir City." Avila's "Noir City" is exemplified by East Coast cities like New York. The Noir City is dirty; crowded; racially and culturally polyglot; and dangerous. Avila traces how Los Angeles boosters; often with roots in suburban and small town Midwestern states; rejected this vision of the city. They saw Los Angeles as a cleaner; safer; more orderly city; which was also; not coincidentally; racial white. Avila looks at elements of popular public culture in LA; such as Disneyland and Dodgers Stadium; to show how this vision of clean respectable orderliness was realized in post war LA. These arenas of cultural display offered an orderly homogenize entertainment for the masses.At the same time the city was undergoing a spatial segregation based along racial and class lines. As Dodger Stadium moved into Chavez Ravine it displaced a longstanding Hispanic community. But far more important were changes in transportation and municipality. Avila traces how; in the early 20th century; Los Angeles public transportation system; which had been adequate and which could have taken off dramatically; was left behind in favor of a car centered transportation network. The automobile; and the resulting highway system; had a decisive impact on the shape of Los Angeles. People who had once congregated on the subways and trolley were now isolated in their cars. The highways allowed suburban commuters to bypass other neighborhoods entirely. A white suburban commuter could live all his life in Los Angeles and never have to see a racial minority or poor person.0 of 19 people found the following review helpful. Better than purchasing from school.By KyanzasuI am a college student attending a University. Books are always a pain in the side to purchase. This was not only a good price; but it came promptly; was well packaged and a very interesting and intriguing read. Very pleased.
