My main area of specialization is ancient political thought, and
especially Greek political theory. The authors I have worked on
include the Sophists, Thucydides, Plato and Aristotle. I am also
interested in the revival of classical political thought in
contemporary liberal theory, in such authors as Stuart Hampshire,
Martha Nussbaum, Leo Strauss, Michael Oakeshott and Alasdair MacIntyre. My current
researches are on the origin of relativism in the thought of the
Greek sophist Protagoras, on the relation between relativism and
democracy and on Machiavelli's view of the eternity of the
world.
I am currently working on two main subjects. First, on
relativism, which I examine in its philosophical and political
aspects, both theoretically and historically. More specifically, I
am interested in the origins of relativism in the notion put forth
by the Greek sophist Protagoras according to which "Man is the
measure of all things"; I examine this notion and its impact on
Greek thought and especially the criticism it received by
Plato and Aristotle. Building on this ancient 'dialogue', I examine
modern theories underlying cultural and political relativism, in
order to identify non-relativistic notions which emerge from the
history of mankind. This is a long and engaging project that should issue
in book form.
My second research concerns Machiavelli's portrait of the "new prince", which I argue is
moulded after the Aristotelian characterization of the statesman,
identified by the virtue of prudence.
