Prior to reading Thucydides’ Peloponnesian War, I envisioned a sort of Braveheart-like battle with lines of Athenians rushing towards lines of Spartans. That’s not even close to what happened. Most battles were proxy battles far from either Athens or Sparta and many battles were fought by sea.
The Peloponnesian War took place between 431 - 404BC. This work covers years 431 - 411BC, abruptly ends mid-year, and is then picked up by Xenophon in Hellenika.
Thucydides uses speeches (141 of them) to add tension & drama to the narrative. We as readers become part of the action, reading the speeches and wondering how the audience will respond. Thucydides also highlights themes of movement, technology, panic, and forms of government to compare and contrast the Athenians and Peloponnesians.
In this episode, I give a brief overview of the work, share some themes and favorite quotes, and close with the ideas that stuck out the most through this work.
Show Notes:
The Speeches of Pericles - Books of Titans Podcast #229
Intro to Thucydides - Podcast episode mentioned
Book Version - The Landmark Thucydides
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