Thucydides - The History of the Peloponnesian War
I remember trying to read this when I was 18 or 19 after first reading Herodotus' The Histories, and falling completely on my face, struggling to make any head way.
It's not an easy read, and sometimes it is not enjoyable slugging through all of the ancient place names in Greece, Persia, Sicily etc and trying to figure out not only where they are, but why they are important, where they fit into the puzzle... perhaps I thought I was too smart (ah, youth) to have to sit next to this book with a pen and paper, and access to an encyclopedia, but probably more so it was that I was doing it wrong.
I first approached THotPW (and indeed, any other history) like you would at school. You convince yourself that for some reason you need to remember all of the minor details because someone will test your knowledge on it at some point. And let's face it that is how we are taught to read anything. Remembering exact details as if our memories are computers. I thought that I would need to remember all of the names of the people and the places in this massive tome on a 27 year war that occurred around 2500 years ago. But what is really important here?
The lessons in history books like this are not the specific dates, places and people.... but what occurred, why it occured, how it played out and how it is still relevant to our lives 2500 years later. There are overarching themes such as might vs right, the cyclical nature of history and how the major political themes repeat themselves over and over in humanity (despite our memories often forgetting them), Justice vs what is best for the state, Will to Power and the need for us to be in control, and the constant motion and need to expand (Athens) vs the conservative / passive attitude (Lacedaemon). There are plenty of contrasts between how people act in times of peace vs how they act in times of war, or with their backs against the wall, psychological lessons and moral lessons.
The scope of this book is massive, and to be truthful you could never cover everything in it without spending a very long time studying it.
Not only did Thucydides become the first man to use the "historical method", but he also wrote a book on a war, that serves as a guide post along the journey of humanity, and still highly relevant 2500 years later.
Over the next few weeks I look forward to transferring my notes into my electronic database and sorting them into useful categories that I can reflect on and make use of in the future.
I remember trying to read this when I was 18 or 19 after first reading Herodotus' The Histories, and falling completely on my face, struggling to make any head way.
It's not an easy read, and sometimes it is not enjoyable slugging through all of the ancient place names in Greece, Persia, Sicily etc and trying to figure out not only where they are, but why they are important, where they fit into the puzzle... perhaps I thought I was too smart (ah, youth) to have to sit next to this book with a pen and paper, and access to an encyclopedia, but probably more so it was that I was doing it wrong.
I first approached THotPW (and indeed, any other history) like you would at school. You convince yourself that for some reason you need to remember all of the minor details because someone will test your knowledge on it at some point. And let's face it that is how we are taught to read anything. Remembering exact details as if our memories are computers. I thought that I would need to remember all of the names of the people and the places in this massive tome on a 27 year war that occurred around 2500 years ago. But what is really important here?
The lessons in history books like this are not the specific dates, places and people.... but what occurred, why it occured, how it played out and how it is still relevant to our lives 2500 years later. There are overarching themes such as might vs right, the cyclical nature of history and how the major political themes repeat themselves over and over in humanity (despite our memories often forgetting them), Justice vs what is best for the state, Will to Power and the need for us to be in control, and the constant motion and need to expand (Athens) vs the conservative / passive attitude (Lacedaemon). There are plenty of contrasts between how people act in times of peace vs how they act in times of war, or with their backs against the wall, psychological lessons and moral lessons.
The scope of this book is massive, and to be truthful you could never cover everything in it without spending a very long time studying it.
Not only did Thucydides become the first man to use the "historical method", but he also wrote a book on a war, that serves as a guide post along the journey of humanity, and still highly relevant 2500 years later.
Over the next few weeks I look forward to transferring my notes into my electronic database and sorting them into useful categories that I can reflect on and make use of in the future.
), but he mellowed and maybe I have too. I've pulled down "On The Good Life", which is a Penguin Classics edition, translator Michael Grant, containing all or part of 5 works. Time will tell.
