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Product Description Xenophons only true Socratic discourse, the Oeconomicus, is a dialogue between Socrates and a gentleman-farmer on the art of household management and the art of farming as practiced on a gentlemans estate. It is generally acknowledged to be the oldest surviving work devoted to "economics," and it constitutes the classic statement of "economic" thought in ancient Greece. The dialogue examines the roles of husband and wife in the household and the division of labor between them, and considers the duties of the farm steward and the housekeeper. It discusses the goals of efficient management and the means for attaining these goals. About the Author Christopher Bruell is professor of political science at Boston College and author of On the Socratic Education: An Introduction to the Shorter Platonic Dialogues and a number of articles on classical political philosophy, including the chapter on Xenophon in the Strauss-Cropsey History of Political Philosophy and a long study of Strauss's book on the Oeconomicus, "Strauss on Xenophon's Socrates," which appeared in The Political Science Reviewer (1984).