Carol Atack
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carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack
@carolatack.bsky.social
6.7K followers 750 following 420 posts

Ancient politics and political thought, modern art, Plato and Xenophon. Fellow of Newnham College, FRHistS. Cambridge and elsewhere. Recent books: Plato: a civic life (Reaktion) and Xenophon (Greece & Rome New Surveys in the Classics, Cambridge). .. more

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carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Oct 25
It's here! My little 'Plato: a civic life', beautifully produced by @reaktionbooks.bsky.social. Thank you to everyone who helped along the way, especially @josephinequinn.bsky.social and Angie Hobbs for the generous quotes, and to Malcolm Schofield, who made Plato possible for me.
A book sits on a wooden shelf with a vase behind it. On the red cover three Doric columns are topped by the texts Plato: A civic life: Carol Atack Back cover of the book. On top of a Doric column sit two texts: 'Philosophy is just the beginning in Carol Atack's page-turner. From Plato’s own travels and troubles to the strange life and peculiar death of his teacher Socrates, the struggles of his city at the hands of enemies at home and abroad to the efforts of its citizens to make sense of things in an era of unending crisis, this is a gripping account of Classical Athens under siege told through the sharp eyes and shifting ideas of its most notable son. ' Josephine Quinn, Professor of Ancient History, University of Oxford and author of How the World Made the West: A 4,000-Year History 'A richly enjoyable and illuminating account of Plato's life and its social and political contexts. Atack handles the wealth of scholarship with a deft touch: she provides considered support for her interpretations but never obscures the main, vivid narrative, into which she skilfully weaves a number of Plato's key ideas and arguments. ' Angie Hobbs, Professor of the Public Understanding of Philosophy, University of Sheffield

Reposted by Duncan Bell

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · 5d
Manuscript now submitted!
carolatack.bsky.social Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · 25d
A very exciting start to the month as the final contribution to the Oxford Handbook of Ancient Greek Political Thought arrived in my inbox - heading now to submission of a complete and formatted manuscript! Partial contents list as a teaser below:
Foreword: engaging with Greek political thought in the 21st century Introduction and overview: I Origins and beginnings 1 Before the Greeks: echoes of earlier societies’ thought on governance 2 Early Greek political thought in poetical texts: Hesiod, Theognis, lyric poets 3 Cosmology, order, and the political: the Presocratics 4 Political Thought in inscriptions, documents and other non-literary sources 5 The Politics of Political Theory in Athenian Drama II Classical Greek political thought 6 Model constitutions: the emergence and development of the politeia tradition and typologies of political arrangements 7 Early Democratic Thought: Democritus, Anonymus Iamblichi, and Protagoras 8 Political Thinking in Herodotus, Thucydides, and Xenophon 9 Socrates between City and Self: The Apologies of Xenophon and Plato 10 The concept of partnership in Plato's Republic 11 Civic Friendship and Virtue in Plato's Republic 12 Plato, politics and epistemology: the Republic and other dialogues 13 Building a new model for kingship in Plato’s Statesman 14 Plato's Laws: envisioning a new society 15 Criticisms of Democracy in Plato's Gorgias and Republic 16 Aristotle on the Partnership in Living Well and Living Together 17 Aristotle: defining the citizen 18 Aristotle on Justice, Friendship and Proportionate Reciprocity 19 Virtue and Politics: Isocrates and Xenophon III Themes and contexts 20 Stasis, conflict and change in Greek political thinking 21 Mass participation in the polis: Ps-Xenophon, Plato, Aristotle, Isocrates, Plutarch 22 Citizenship and non-citizenship: status hierarchies in the polis 23 The Limits of Law: Nomos in Plato and Aristotle 24 Cities and their gods: religion in Greek political thought 25 Bad tyrants and good kings: single-person rule 26 Comparisons with others: Persia, Egypt and non-Greek societies in Greek political thought 27 Slavery and freedom as a political analogy 28 Sparta in Greek political thought: Xenophon, Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · 5d
Hearing from @polphilpod.bsky.social that my 'Plato's tyrant' episode has made the top 5 of his Political Philosophy podcast this year, remembered to post a picture of the 'Plato's tyrant' protest sign which the artist Peter Liversidge made for me at his sign-making studio installation in October.
Tucked in the corner of a room, two cardboard protest placards, one of which says 'Plato's tyrant', in black capital letters, the other, partially seen, says 'Bureaucracy accumulates'. To the right in front of them is a shelf of wooden model boats, made by the same artist, Peter Liversidge.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · 5d
So much enjoyed talking to Toby @polphilpod.bsky.social and glad that others enjoyed listening!

Reposted by Carol Atack

polphilpod.bsky.social
Toby Buckle @polphilpod.bsky.social · 6d
most downloaded interviews in 2025:

5. plato's tyrant @carolatack.bsky.social

4. ignoring politics @chrisfreiman.bsky.social

3. the eu @simonhix.bsky.social

2. the political right & equality @mattpolprof.bsky.social

1. it's fascism @kjephd.bsky.social

www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com
HOME | politicalphilosophy
Discussions with Philosophers and public figures. Politics, ethics, meta-ethics, human rights, religion, atheism, liberalism, and republicanism.
www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · 13d
The rest of the museum is an extraordinary jumble of art, antiquities and artefacts from many cultures. Here’s the antiquarian’s studiolo…
Study in which an astonishing array of books and objects are piled on a wooden desk and a bureau, topped by a model sailing ship.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · 13d
If you’re looking for wholesome family content how about Giuliano Bugiardini’s delightful family group with Leda, Castor, Clytemnestra and a rather tame swan? Painted in the 1520s and now on display in the Casa Museo Ivan Bruschi, Arezzo?
A nude woman reclines on the ground by a tree, her arm around a small nude cild. They are approached by another nude child, his (?) arm around the neck of a swan. Behind them the beautiful garden looks on to a lake, reflecting the blue sky.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · 25d
Last line of the screenshot which wouldn't fit in the Alt text: '29 Parrhesia and the Critique of Rhetoric in the Classical Polis'. Thanks to all the authors who've come on this long journey with me! More soon; now to settle on a cover image...

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · 25d
Rabbits, as my Grandma would have said!

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · 25d
A very exciting start to the month as the final contribution to the Oxford Handbook of Ancient Greek Political Thought arrived in my inbox - heading now to submission of a complete and formatted manuscript! Partial contents list as a teaser below:
Foreword: engaging with Greek political thought in the 21st century Introduction and overview: I Origins and beginnings 1 Before the Greeks: echoes of earlier societies’ thought on governance 2 Early Greek political thought in poetical texts: Hesiod, Theognis, lyric poets 3 Cosmology, order, and the political: the Presocratics 4 Political Thought in inscriptions, documents and other non-literary sources 5 The Politics of Political Theory in Athenian Drama II Classical Greek political thought 6 Model constitutions: the emergence and development of the politeia tradition and typologies of political arrangements 7 Early Democratic Thought: Democritus, Anonymus Iamblichi, and Protagoras 8 Political Thinking in Herodotus, Thucydides, and Xenophon 9 Socrates between City and Self: The Apologies of Xenophon and Plato 10 The concept of partnership in Plato's Republic 11 Civic Friendship and Virtue in Plato's Republic 12 Plato, politics and epistemology: the Republic and other dialogues 13 Building a new model for kingship in Plato’s Statesman 14 Plato's Laws: envisioning a new society 15 Criticisms of Democracy in Plato's Gorgias and Republic 16 Aristotle on the Partnership in Living Well and Living Together 17 Aristotle: defining the citizen 18 Aristotle on Justice, Friendship and Proportionate Reciprocity 19 Virtue and Politics: Isocrates and Xenophon III Themes and contexts 20 Stasis, conflict and change in Greek political thinking 21 Mass participation in the polis: Ps-Xenophon, Plato, Aristotle, Isocrates, Plutarch 22 Citizenship and non-citizenship: status hierarchies in the polis 23 The Limits of Law: Nomos in Plato and Aristotle 24 Cities and their gods: religion in Greek political thought 25 Bad tyrants and good kings: single-person rule 26 Comparisons with others: Persia, Egypt and non-Greek societies in Greek political thought 27 Slavery and freedom as a political analogy 28 Sparta in Greek political thought: Xenophon, Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 26
Such sad news. I loved my lilac and silver mini dress from Pam Hogg's 1980s Kensington market stall. A truely original creative spirit.

Reposted by Carol Atack

theguardian.com
The Guardian @theguardian.com · Nov 26
Pam Hogg, fashion designer with a rock’n’roll spirit, dies at 66
Pam Hogg, fashion designer with a rock’n’roll spirit, dies at 66
‘100% party girl’ and key part of 1980s London club scene designed for Rihanna, Björk, Kylie Minogue and Debbie Harry Pam Hogg, the fashion designer who brought together fashion and music on the catwalk in the 1980s, has died aged 66, her family have said. Hogg, whose bold, futuristic designs were worn by stars including Rihanna, Kate Moss and Blondie’s Debbie Harry, died “surrounded by the loving care of cherished friends and family”, her family posted on Instagram. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 21
the point is that the character M is pretty much the same width as height in regular typefaces. And it’s character width that matters for old-tech typesetting.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 21
To be precise, the sizes of the capital letter forms N and M (my journalism training came at the end of the era of traditional typesetting).

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 17
My review of Ryan Balot's 'Tragedy, Philosophy, and Political Education in Plato's Laws' now published by Sehepunkte (in English); while I wasn't sure about the book's overall claim about the dialogue's philosophical coherence, I found much valuable analysis in it. www.sehepunkte.de/2025/11/4010...
SEHEPUNKTE - Rezension von: Tragedy, Philosophy, and Political Education in Plato's Laws - Ausgabe 25 (2025), Nr. 11
Rezension über Ryan K. Balot: Tragedy, Philosophy, and Political Education in Plato's Laws, Oxford: Oxford University Press 2024, XIV + 425 S., ISBN 978-0-1976-4722-6, GBP 78,00
www.sehepunkte.de

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 15
Warmly recommend Harold Offeh 'Mmm Gotta Try a Little Harder, It Could Be Sweet' at Kettle's Yard - a friendly & generous exploration of identity, playful & participatory - impossible not to dance along to Haroldinho's samba moves, fun to make your own Afrofuturist record cover art.
Exhibition gallery at Kettle's Yard waiting for visitors to interact with Harold Offeh's performances - in the foreground and colourful table with stools and paper, ink and stamps; on the walls an installation of American payphone booths with handsets for listening, a yellow curtain behind which are screens showing video. Large scale lettering on the wall in orange echoes the show's title.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 13
Other contributors include Mario Telò, Isabel Ruffell, Amy Coker, Dan-el Padilla Peralta, Jon Hesk, and the editors Samuel Gartland and Constanze Güthenke. If you're looking to refresh your thinking on Aristophanes' politics, lots to enjoy here. www.bloomsbury.com/uk/aristopha...
www.bloomsbury.com

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 13
Published today! Really pleased to see Aristophanes and the Current Moment in print via @bloomsburyacad.bsky.social. My contribution, 'Aristophanes and the Gendered Politics of Performative Assembly' applies Judith Butler's analysis of public protest to Aristophanes' Lysistrata and Ecclesiazusae.
Book cover - on a blue background the book title Aristophanes and the Current Moment is reversed out in white; beneath it a black and white photograph of a stage production. A man, looking rather bemused, rides a giant beetle stage prop which is being carried through the air on wires.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 11
I hope she'll come to see it in the Fitz!

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 11
I only found it because I spotted an ad on the S-Bahn! Worth checking what's in the gallery in future - it's the newish temporary exhibition space for the archaeology museums, in the building which will one day be a visitor welcome centre for the Pergamon Museum along with its neighbours.

Reposted by Carol Atack

lizgloyn.bsky.social
Rev. Dr. Liz Gloyn @lizgloyn.bsky.social · Nov 11
Very pleased to see the WCC UK restate its commitment to the support of trans and non-binary folk in the discipline, particularly in light of the current political climate.
WCC Supports Trans People - WCC-UK
Following a unanimous vote at the 2025 AGM, the Women’s Classical Committee UK wishes to reiterate its unwavering support for trans and non-binary people. We are deeply concerned at the harmful implic...
wcc-uk.blogs.sas.ac.uk

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 11
Another dedication made on behalf of a child - this small boy also holds a ball in his left hand, and is wearing a protective bulla (amulet) round his neck. Very moving to see parents' dedications on behalf of their children.
Bronze statue of a small boy, who is naked other than the protective amulet around his neck. He sits with his right hand raised, looking at something perhaps once held in his right hand; his left hand holdes a ball. Found in the sanctuary at San Casciano as part of the buried cache of statues and religious objects.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 11
Another statue from San Casciano, showing a woman at prayer, with beautiful details of her dress.
Bronze statue of a woman, dramatically lit in an exhibtion case. She raises her arms in prayer. She wears a long dress, heavily draped, and her braided hair can be seen below here covered head.

Reposted by Peter Stewart

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 11
Lucky to catch the last weekend of the stunning San Casciano bronzes' visit to Berlin - these sculptures were ritually buried at a Tuscan healing sanctuary in the 1st century CE after a lightning strike, & were excavated in the last few years. So revelatory about ancient religious practice
A bronze statue of a child wearing a tunic and holding a ball in its left hand - the ball was originally separate, and now returned to the hand it fits perfectly. The statue was originally dedicated at the healing sanctuary at San Casciano in Tuscany before being buried after the sanctuary was hit by lightning; the cache of sculptures and other objects discovered recently, and this statue excavated in 2024. Shown on display at the James Simon Galerie in Berlin as part of an exhbition organised by the Antikensammlung there.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 6
Congratulations!

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 4
'Nanti time like the present. come on, let's get it on...'. Loving Prof Jennifer Ingleheart's trio of translations of Catullus into Polari, the old language of gay Londoners, in Shearsman 145-6. www.shearsman.com/shearsman-ma...
Magazine cover of Shearsman 145 and 146; the cover image is a painting of St Ceciia, wearing a read dress and white head wrap, playing the viol with her gaze turned upwards, by Guido Reni.

Reposted by Duncan Bell

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Nov 1
Cambridge’s Black Atlantic connections, a major research project for the Fitzwilliam Museum - commemorating Olaudah Equiano’s Cambridgeshire family, www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Lost grave of daughter of Black abolitionist Olaudah Equiano found by A-level student
Fitzwilliam Museum has uncovered student’s work from 1977 that revealed Cambridgeshire location of child’s burial place
www.theguardian.com

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Oct 31
The Almeida Theatre adaptation of Alan Hollinghurst's The Line of Beauty captures the glamour and grime of 1980s London, where financial buccaneering, racial inequality and the AIDS crisis upended lives, but we all danced to excellent music. Five stars from me especially for the cast & the design.
Programme for 'The Line of Beauty' at the Almeida Theatre, featuring Jasper Talbot in character as Nick Guest, wearing a white vest with his arms raised.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Oct 21
Great story and important history from the National Army Museum in today's @theguardian.com - a newly acquired portrait shines a light on a Black veteran of Waterloo, one of several Black soldiers honoured for their service in the Napoleonic wars. www.theguardian.com/culture/2025...
London museum identifies black Waterloo veteran in rare 1821 painting
‘Honourable’ bandsman Thomas James will feature in display at National Army Museum highlighting service of black soldiers in Napoleonic wars
www.theguardian.com

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Oct 14
Have cheated but of course! That makes a lot of sense.

carolatack.bsky.social
Carol Atack @carolatack.bsky.social · Oct 13
If you can't access BBC iPlayer, Myles' interview is also on Youtube...