Peter Jones

Ancient and Modern – 23 July 2004

A classicist draws on ancient wisdom to illuminate contemporary follies

issue 24 July 2004

Aitios in ancient Greek means both ‘responsible’ and ‘culpable’. Since Greeks were well aware of the distinction, they would have much enjoyed the nuances of the Butler report and the responses to it.

The Athenian orator Demosthenes (384–322 bc) comes up with some fascinating general statements about the problem.

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