Introduction: Models, Methods, and Morality in the Study of Ancient Mediterranean Economies

Recent work in the field of economics expands our understanding of economic development, especially its social dimensions. This literature offers new possibilities for the field of the study of the ancient Greco-Roman world, where historians have also become increasingly interested in non-elite and sociohistorical narratives. In the last several decades, while ancient economic history has seen vigorous interest, this research has tended to focus on quantifying economic performance with less consideration of growth’s societal effects. The current volume responds to this situation by promoting a more socially attuned and moral economic history of the ancient Mediterranean. This chapter lays out the volume’s scope, framing its contributions around both a critique of recent work in the field of ancient economic history and around the goal of pointing out avenues for future work.