Sir Moses Israel Finley (born Finkelstein; 20 May 1912 – 23 June 1986) was an American-born British academic and

classical scholar Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

. His prosecution by the United States Senate Subcommittee on Internal Security during the 1950s resulted in his relocation to England, where he became an English classical scholar and eventually master of Darwin College, Cambridge. His most notable publication is '' The Ancient Economy'' (1973), in which he argued that the economy in antiquity was governed by status and civic ideology rather than rational economic motivations.

Personal life

Finley was born in 1912 in New York City to Nathan Finkelstein and Anna Katzenellenbogen. About 1946, he adopted the surname Finley. He was educated at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

, where, aged fifteen, he graduated '' magna cum laude'' in psychology, and at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. Although his M.A. was in

public law Public law is the part of law that governs relations and affairs between legal persons and a government, between different institutions within a state, between different branches of governments, as well as relationships between persons that ...

, most of his published work concerned

ancient history Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian language, ...

, especially the social and economic aspects of the classical world. In 1932 Finley married Mary (, who later changed to her mother's surname, Thiers), a schoolteacher, and the two enjoyed a happy and mutually reinforcing marriage. On the day of her death he suffered a cerebral haemorrhage, and he died the following day on 23 June 1986 at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge. ''The New York Times'' obituary adds: "He had suffered a stroke the previous day, an hour after learning of the death of his wife."

Career

United States

Finley taught at

and

City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a Public university, public research university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York ...

, where he was influenced by members of the

Frankfurt School The Frankfurt School is a school of thought in sociology and critical theory. It is associated with the University of Frankfurt Institute for Social Research, Institute for Social Research founded in 1923 at the University of Frankfurt am Main ...

who were working in exile in America. He then taught at Rutgers University. On 5 September 1951, an ex-communist, Karl Wittfogel, testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee that Finley was a communist. On 28 March 1952, Finley appeared before the Committee and invoked the Fifth Amendment regarding his association with communism. On 7 September 1952, Lewis Webster Jones, the president of Rutgers University, announced his intention to appoint Trustee and Faculty Committees to review the cases of professors involved in government inquiries. On 15 November 1952,

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

Director J. Edgar Hoover met with Jones to discuss the cases. On 12 December 1952, Rutger's Board of Trustees resolution declared, "It shall be cause for immediate dismissal of any member of faculty or staff" to fail to co-operate with government inquiries. On 31 December 1952, Rutgers dismissed Finley. Rutgers University records show:

On 3 December 1952, the Special Faculty Committee issued a report stating there should be no charges against Heimlich or Finley and that the University should take no further action in the matter. However, the Trustees, who had the final say in the matter, issued a resolution on 12 December 1952: "it shall be cause for immediate dismissal of any member of faculty or staff" who invokes the Fifth Amendment before an investigatory body in refusing to answer questions relating to communist affiliations and that Professors Heimlich and Finley would be dismissed as of December of 31, 1952 unless they conformed to the new policy. Neither chose to do so. There was protest at the decision by members of the faculty, who formed an Emergency Committee on the matter.

In 1954, he appeared before the United States Senate Subcommittee on Internal Security, which asked him whether he had ever been a member of the Communist Party USA. He again invoked the Fifth Amendment and refused to answer.

Britain

Finley immigrated to Britain, where he was appointed university lecturer in classics at

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

(1955–1964) and, during 1957, elected to a fellowship at Jesus College. He was reader of ancient social and economic history (1964–1970), professor of ancient history (1970–1979) and master of Darwin College (1976–1982). He gave the 1974 Mortimer Wheeler Archaeological Lecture. He broadened the scope of classical studies from

philology Philology () is the study of language in Oral tradition, oral and writing, written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also de ...

to culture, economics, and society. He became a British subject in 1962, and a Fellow of the British Academy in 1971, and was knighted by Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

during 1979. He was a doctorate adviser to Paul Millett, now a senior lecturer in Classics at the University of Cambridge.

Work

Among his works, ''The World of Odysseus'' (1954, revised ed. with additional essays 1978) proved seminal. In it, he applied the findings of ethnologists and anthropologists like Marcel Mauss to interpret

Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...

, a radical method that was thought by his publishers to require a reassuring introduction by an established

classicist Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

, Maurice Bowra. Paul Cartledge asserted in 1995, "... in retrospect Finley's work can be seen as the seed of the present flowering of anthropologically-related studies of ancient Greek culture and society". Following the example of Karl Polanyi, Finley argued that the ancient economy should not be analysed using the concepts of modern economic science, because ancient man had no notion of the economy as a separate part of society, and because economic actions in antiquity were determined not primarily by economic, but by social concerns. This text was later criticized by, amongst others, Kevin Greene, who argues that Finley underplays the importance of technological innovation, and C. R. Whittaker, who rejects the concept of a "consumer city".

Bibliography

*''Studies in Land and Credit in Ancient Athens, 500–200 B.C.: The Horos Inscriptions'' (1951). *''Economy and Society in Ancient Greece'' (1953). *''The World of Odysseus'' (1954). *''Aspects of Antiquity: Discoveries and Controversies'' (1960). *''The Ancient Greeks: An Introduction to Their Life and Thought'' (1963). *''A History of Sicily'': with Denis Mack Smith (3 vols., 1968). **''Ancient Sicily to the Arab Conquest'', vol. 1 **''Medieval Sicily - 800-1713'', vol. 2 **''Modern Sicily - After 1713'', vol. 3 *''Aspects of Antiquity: Discoveries and Controversies'' (1968). *''Early Greece: The Bronze and Archaic Ages'' (1970). *'' The Ancient Economy'' (1973). *''Democracy Ancient and Modern'' (1973). *''Studies in Ancient Society'', editor (1974). *''The Use and Abuse of History'' (1975). *''Schliemann's Troy: One Hundred Years After'' (1975). *''Studies in Roman Property'', editor (1976). *''The Olympic Games: The First Thousand Years'', with H.W. Pleket (1976). *''Ancient Slavery and Modern Ideology'' (1980; expanded edition edited by Brent D. Shaw, 1998). *''The Legacy of Greece: A New Appraisal'' (1981). *''Authority and Legitimacy in the Classical City-State'' (1982). *''Politics in the Ancient World'' (1983). *''Ancient History: Evidence and Models'' (1985). *''A History of Sicily'', with Denis Mack Smith & Christopher Duggan (1986; abridged from the 1968 edition). Finley was also the editor of numerous volumes of essays on ancient history.

Notes

External links

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Lancaster University
Photo of Moses Finley {{DEFAULTSORT:Finley, Moses 1912 births 1986 deaths 20th-century American historians 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American Jews American classical scholars American emigrants to the United Kingdom American male non-fiction writers City College of New York faculty Classical scholars of Columbia University Classical scholars of Rutgers University Columbia University faculty Columbia University alumni English classical scholars English historians Fellows of Darwin College, Cambridge Fellows of Jesus College, Cambridge Fellows of the British Academy Professors of Ancient History (Cambridge) Jewish American historians Knights Bachelor Masters of Darwin College, Cambridge Members of the University of Cambridge faculty of classics Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom Syracuse University alumni Victims of McCarthyism Jewish English writers Presidents of the Classical Association Wolfson History Prize winners