Book description
Writing: Theory and History of the Technology of Civilization
traces the origins of writing tied to speech from ancient Sumer through
the Greek alphabet and beyond.
- Examines the earliest evidence for writing in Mesopotamia in the
fourth millennium BC, the origins of purely phonographic systems,
and the mystery of alphabetic writing
- Includes discussions of Ancient Egyptian,Chinese, and Mayan writing
- Shows how the structures of writing served and do serve social
needs and in turn create patterns of social behavior
- Clarifies the argument with many illustrations
Barry B. Powell
is Halls-Bascom Professor Emeritus of Classics at the University of
Wisconsin-Madison. He has written extensively on ancient Greek
literature and the history of writing. His books include
Homer and
the Origin of the Greek Alphabet
(1991),
A New Companion to Homer
(editor, with Ian Morris) (1997),
Writing and the Origins of Greek Literature
(2001), and two editions of
Homer
(second edition, Blackwell, 2007).
