Greek language and culture - Their vitality and importance today

The eloquent, scholarly, and thought-provoking lecture of the late Harvard Professor of Classical Greek Literature Cedric H. Whitman that is presented in this book was first published in 1954 in New York. In preparing the present edition of it, Professor Constantine Cavarnos has made a number of additions that greatly enhance its presentation. They are as follows:

A Biographical Note on Whitman; a list of the books he has authored; a photograph of him; a very noteworthy comment on the Greek language by Paissy Velichkovsky (1722-1794), famous Russian translator of the monumental 'Philokalia' from the original Greek into the Slavonic tongue, and an equally noteworthy comment on it by the eminent Greek educator and philosopher Benjamin of Lesvos (1762-1824); and finally, an Appendix containing illuminating texts on the Greek language by two later scholars, each of whom has written a book on the modern Greek language - the Oxford scholar E. M. Geldart and the American scholar Thomas L. Stedman. The comments, and the texts in the Appendix, support the standpoint of Professor Cedric H. Whitman and contribute important additional insights regarding the Greek language and culture.

Dr. Whitman's lecture is pointed at showing the vitality of the Greek language and its importance today. He does this by discussing the Greek language not as an isolated phenomenon, but with constant reference to Greek culture in general, particularly to Greek literature - ancient, medieval, and modern. He repeatedly calls attention to the diachronic characteristics of the Greek language and culture that account for their vitality and contemporary importance.