"The classical civilizations of Greece and Rome dominated the world some forty lifetimes before our own, and they continue to intrigue, inspire and enlighten us. The Classical World describes the vast sweep of history in which these two great civilizations prevailed - from the epic poems of Homer and the beginning of literacy through the foundation of Athenian democracy and the turbulent empire-building of Alexander the Great to the Roman Republic and the establishment of the Roman Empire, the rise of Christianity, and the challenges this new faith faced in the Roman imperial age. Robin Lane Fox's telling of this great story focuses on the themes of freedom, justice and luxury which unified these civilizations, and approaches the classical worlds through the eyes of their classicizing enthusiast, the Roman Emperor Hadrian."--Jacket.