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Engaging history

Revisado: 10-03-24

This was a wonderful history. Cantor expressed the world in terms of the life of the mind well. He clearly mastered the best primary sources. For example, we get a wonderful introduction to the troubadours. Other themes include Catholic theology and mysticism, ancient law, writing of both peasantry and nobility, etc.

I have decided to dig deeper into the legal, poetic, and theological texts of the era as a result of reading this book.

The narrator has a wonderful British accent, but it takes some time to accustom oneself to it.

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An important work

Revisado: 02-15-23

Kuhn’s treatise turned the word ‘paradigm’ from an obscure synonym for ‘model’ into a (hackneyed?) description of almost any human activity. It’s really only in the context of this book that the idea of paradigm shifts can be appreciated. One of my favorite aspects of this book is how Kuhn describes scientific research from the ancient Greeks through Einstein without giving us any idol worship,

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Great read

Revisado: 01-31-23

I’ve watched Kagan’s free lectures on Greek history a few times. This is a very polished version of the main part of those lectures. Anyone interested in this war and Greek history will enjoy this book.

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Well done

Revisado: 11-21-22

The pronunciation is good, as far as I can tell. This version is just the translated ancient text without any notes.

Xenophon aspired to ideals of Greek excellence. He was a soldier, historian, and philosopher. In Hellenica, he tried to finish what Thucydides started— literally beginning where that great historian left us hanging. We don’t see the author himself in this narrative. For his story about burning bridges behind himself on the way to Persia, look at the Anabasis. Instead, we get battles and politics. Almost nobody regards Xenophon as being superior to Thucydides, but his is an essential source for the Peloponnesian war as well.

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Well read, great piece

Revisado: 10-21-22

Thucydides was from a prominent Athenian family but was exiled after a serious blunder cost the lives of many of his compatriots. He likely heard Herodotus himself recite his history as a child or young man. Thucydides saw this history as far more significant than the Persian War. He wanted to avoid any tales of fantastical phenomena like Herodotus recounted, and certainly didn’t want any Homeric theodicies. He wanted to explain human events in human terms, and was remarkably successful.

From a certain perspective, the Peloponnesian War never ended. At heart, this was the first war between democracy and oligarchy. Thucydides tells about many battles, many truces, and inevitable rekindling of hostilities. Some ancient Greeks longed for humane treatment for POWs, but brutality always seems to have been preferred. Some cities appealed to charity and generosity, but that appeal always lost to the allure of wealth and military strength. Some political scientists classify Thucydides as a ‘realist’, but I suppose they have to assume that he really approved of ‘realism’. He described both sides and observed that men choose self interest over kindness in political matters.

I thought the narrator did a very nice job. He seems to have a good grasp of Greek pronunciation, at least insofar as I can tell. For example, he pronounces ‘Boeotia’ correctly.

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Good version. Negatives for the eminent Livy

Revisado: 09-23-22

Titus Livius, who modern people call Livy, was a friend and contemporary of Caesar Augustus. He wrote this book in Classical Greek, which makes it very awkward. I think the translation probably allows itself to keep some of the foibles, the most glaring of which is the tense. I can't think of another author who uses tense so strangely, but I think it is probably a good rendering of the style.

One reason to read this book: If you are curious about 'Discourses on Livy' by Machiavelli, shouldn't you read Livy himself first?

One reason to delay reading this one: There are a lot of ancient historians who were more thought provoking than he was, in my opinion.

Still, this isn't a bad read. The later books are disappointingly fragmentary. This version has what remains of Livy's complete works. He wrote 146 books shortly following the Battle of Actium, in which he participated and here bears witness. This prolific writer takes us from the founding of Rome to events during his own life. So does Cassius Dio. I think Cassius Dio is somewhat more trustworthy, personally. Perhaps too much can be made of Livy's friendship with Augustus, but there is a potential motive of propagandizing for Augustus in the entire work. There is also a certain sincerity here-- if you ever thought about writing a history of a country from its earliest origins, Livy accomplished that. It's a great accomplishment. One striking feature of the narrative is how often ancestors of later emperors are subjects in it. Livy will give you an introduction to Sextus Julius Caesar, illustrious ancestor of Julius Caesar. The families of Augustus, Galba, and Nero are described. Livy wrote during the reign of Augustus and did not know about these latter two emperors. He also talks about a certain Flaccus, ancestor of a much later infamous Egyptian governor. There was a continuity between the Republican period and the Imperial period in terms of which families had access to power. One thing that is just very strange, but charming, about most ancient historians is how they report about miracles and dreams. Winston Churchill once wrote a book about his dreams during WWII, but few world leaders tell us what their dreams are anymore. Livy loves to tell us about weird miracles that some people say happened. I thought that one highlight of Livy, and it was something I don't remember from another source, was about the worshipers of Bacchus. They were banned from practicing their religion at one time and the accusations were really shocking. Livy tells that story with skill and detail.

The narrator did a great job. Livy loves writing run-on sentences. Luckily, the chapter breaks are short. If you want a stopping place, pause at chapter breaks.

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