Learning outcomes: Students gain knowledge of a series of theories, often contradicting one another, concerning the phenomenon of the polis-state as a congregation of peer citizens. At the same time, students have the opportunity to comprehend the particularities of the polis-state as a political institution, and thus to practice their analytical skills applying comparative methods in a historical perspective.

General Competences: 
The ancient Greek city-state has been represented by many scholars as an exquisite example of social and political cohesion. Yet, many others point to ancient Greek sources proving that the city-state has harbored every kind of factionalism and conflict. In the course of this seminar all centripetal and centrifugal social tendencies in the polis-state are discussed, along with the philosophers’ attitudes, the problem of economic and social inequality, and the threat of violence. Religion, social mentality, and the idiosyncratic moral system of competitive values and of individualism consist some of the major axes of discussion