A New Theory of Democracy's Origins (It Wasn't Greece) A radical new theory is challenging the traditional narrative of how democracy was born. "It wasn't Greece!" argues political scientist David Stasavage.
Anacyclosis: Polybius' Grand Unified Theory of History Polybius' theory of anacyclosis is the most sophisticated theory of political (r)evolution to have emerged from ancient Greek and Roman political thought.
Does Democracy Lead to Tyranny? (Rep. VIII) Plato argued that the inevitable next step in political evolution after democracy is tyranny. Many political thinkers throughout history agreed with him. Were they right?
Why People Hate Plato (Republic VI) Plato is at once the most loved and possibly the most hated philosopher of all time. This episode explores why.
Oligarchy, Part 2: Nemesis w/ Matt Simonto What institutions do oligarchic regimes use to maintain power? How do they fend off the threat of democratic revolution? What happened to the many oligarchies of the ancient Mediterranean?
How Democracies Fall Apart w/ Melissa Lane Hundreds of city-states in the ancient world experimented with democracy. Most of them experienced some kind of civil strife at some point. What caused these breakdowns of social order, and are we headed towards a similar fate?
America's Greco-Roman Legacies w/ Caroline Winterer When the Founding Fathers were drafting the US constitution, the world around them had been dominated by kingdoms and empires for almost two millennia.
The Comedy of Democracy w/ Edith Hall World-renowned classicist Edith Hall joins us to discuss the relation between entertainment and politics in ancient Athens, particularly on the comic stage.
Democracy and Demagogues in Ancient Athens w/ Josiah Ober Historian Josiah Ober of Stanford University joins us for a discussion on ancient Athens, how the Athenian system compared to our own democracy, and what lessons, if any, we can take away from the Athenian experience.
