Twelve Greeks and Romans Who Changed the World

Carl J. Richard is associate professor of history at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and author of The Founders and the Classics: Greece, Rome, and the American Enlightenment.

Carl Richard's lively tour through the lives of twelve Greeks and Romans who created the Western world is a liberal education in itself, clearly telling us not just what we should know but why we should know it. For those tired of the melodrama of Western wickedness, Twelve Greeks and Romans will provide them with the necessary corrective: a clear overview of the unique virtues of the West and their origins among the Greeks and Romans.

• Chapter 1 PrefaceChapter 2 IntroductionChapter 3 Homer: Founder of Western LiteratureChapter 4 Thales: Founder of Western ScienceChapter 5 Themistocles: Defender of Greek CivilizationChapter 6 Pericles: Democratic ReformerChapter 7 Plato: Founder of Western PhilosophyChapter 8 Alexander the Great: Disseminator of Greek CultureChapter 9 Scipio Africanus: Defender of the Roman RepublicChapter 10 Julius Caesar: Destroyer of the Roman RepublicChapter 11 Cicero: Statesman, Philosopher, and Republican MartyrChapter 12 Augustus: Founder of the Roman EmpireChapter 13 Paul of Tarsus: Christian EvangelistChapter 14 Augustine: Christian TheologianChapter 15 Brief Bibliographical Suggestions for General Readers