Book excerpt: This collective study examines the transformation (metamorphosis) that Greece has experienced over the course of the 20th century by exploring its gradual evolution into a consolidated democracy, an advanced economy in the Eurozone and a balanced partner in the EU and NATO promoting a stabilizing role in southeastern Europe. The book examines the variables contributing to the profiling of contemporary Greece, emphasizing the conceptual inertia bedevilling the studies of Greece in recent years by focusing on the elements that indicated the slow pace in the country's modernization. In conclusion, there is a need for Greece's constant commitment to functional adjustments regarding the country's economic, political and strategic priorities in order to promote effectively the role of regional stabilizer acting in concert with NATO and EU partners.