Travail et labeur dans l'Antiquité grecque et romaine

Why revisit the topic of labour in ancient societies today, thus running the risk of being somewhat anachronistic? First, because the concept of labour remains a heuristic tool that is both stimulating and essential for tracing, over long periods of history, the economic, social, and symbolic forces at stake in the ancient world. Second, because this inquiry responds to the profound changes unfolding in our time and to the historian’s reflective stance, which compels us never to ignore the present. Faced with the unexpected and undoubtedly irreversible changes brought about by the recent frenzy of innovations, reflecting on ancient Greek and Roman societies, with their “strange familiarity,” reveals our own trajectories and sheds light not only on essential aspects of the past but also on our present. Addressing various topics and adopting different approaches, the essays collected in this volume aim to contribute to the ongoing debate on labour.