Greek slave systems in their Eastern Mediterranean context, c.800-146 BC /

Lewis (Edinburgh, UK) takes a good stab at a complex subject. He defines the term "slave" only on pages 25--27 though he has used the term himself innumerable times before that. The author seems to be giving a rebuttal of a 1981 work by Moses I. Finley about slavery in the Greek and Roman worlds being somehow different from slavery in other parts of the world closely surrounding the Greeks and Romans. One problem with using this as the basis for his argument is that Lewis assumes Finley's is still the most widely accepted view. However, he has not proved this starting point. Lewis also tends to use jargon when it is not necessary. One example comes on page 9, where he complains about terminology in the field and then concludes that it is a "pleonasm." Another is where he remarks that something is "etic, not emic," thus falling into jargon himself. Lewis has done extensive research in fields separated quite a bit geographically and chronologically. His bibliography is extensive. Summing Up: Optional. Graduate students through faculty. --Dorothy Anne Slane, University of Maryland University College