So, I finally finished The Histories. It has taken a day short of a year from start to finish, though I have taken a couple of big breaks in that time. It is a large, 600 page, 9 section work and in a lot of ways is easier in the seconds half. I did not get stuck with it in the same way I did with the Upanishads, it was just slow and steady going.
I'm not writing these in order at the moment. I've written this just after restarting the blog and, boy, is it good to be back! I'm excited to get more writing done, as well as a bit more reading!
The Story
The Histories centres around the story, from both sides of the two Persian invasions of the Greek city states. The first, under Darius, proceeds into the peninsular, only as far as Marathon and stopped short of the goal of Athens. The Second, under Xerxes, the son of Darius, sacked Athens but was turned back after the defeat of his maritime force at Salamis. A smaller contingent was left in Greece, after the retreat of the main army. This smaller army fought in the battle with the 300 Spartans, at Thermopylae. This gives us the great quote, where Leonidas replied "Won't it be nice, then, if we shall have shade in which to fight them?" about the threat of the Persians arrows blotting out the sun. After this battle, the army moved inland and sacked Athens again (not that there was much to sack). This army was eventually defeated at Plataea.
Though these are the two main thrust of The Histories, Herodotus spends a lot of time on side tracks and hearsay. Some of these are fanciful stories which he often notes as hearsay (ants that collect gold for the Indians) and others are other historical stories. These historical stories are always to the best of Herodotus' knowledge but that is, at times, misguided, for example, when he states that cinnamon is made from a certain bird's legs. He lays out, as best he can, what can be known of the Mediterranean world, at the time.
Though these are the two main thrust of The Histories, Herodotus spends a lot of time on side tracks and hearsay. Some of these are fanciful stories which he often notes as hearsay (ants that collect gold for the Indians) and others are other historical stories. These historical stories are always to the best of Herodotus' knowledge but that is, at times, misguided, for example, when he states that cinnamon is made from a certain bird's legs. He lays out, as best he can, what can be known of the Mediterranean world, at the time.
Reflections
This text is known as the first time someone tried to record the realities of a war, as well as its causes, and also to work in prose. Therefore, he is sometimes described as the father of western history, though Cicero calls him the father of lies due to the more fanciful parts of his work.
I know there is some debate on the numbers of Persians in Xerxes invasion, with many noting that there would not have been enough water on the peninsular to support as large an army, as is reported by Herodotus. And, in the retreat, we see some of this as the land struggles to supply the army in retreat. I think the main argument against a deliberate over numbering is Herodotus' precision in his reckoning of the army's numbers. I would believe he rounded these number up but I would not go so far as to say that I think they are not accurate.
Herodotus' progression around the Mediterranean world in the first parts of the book has a great many interesting stories and it surprised me just how wide of a world was known, at least in part, to Herodotus. His stories even included a circumnavigation of Africa (Libya) by a party sent from Egypt and gold mining ants in India. This, with his knowledge of Greece, gives quite a large sphere of knowledge, even if some of it is a little misguided.
I know there is some debate on the numbers of Persians in Xerxes invasion, with many noting that there would not have been enough water on the peninsular to support as large an army, as is reported by Herodotus. And, in the retreat, we see some of this as the land struggles to supply the army in retreat. I think the main argument against a deliberate over numbering is Herodotus' precision in his reckoning of the army's numbers. I would believe he rounded these number up but I would not go so far as to say that I think they are not accurate.
Herodotus' progression around the Mediterranean world in the first parts of the book has a great many interesting stories and it surprised me just how wide of a world was known, at least in part, to Herodotus. His stories even included a circumnavigation of Africa (Libya) by a party sent from Egypt and gold mining ants in India. This, with his knowledge of Greece, gives quite a large sphere of knowledge, even if some of it is a little misguided.
Comparisons
Because this is the first history and the first prose text it may at first seem that there is little to compare it to, but I think there are still some worth while things to say.
Like the Iliad, there is a multitude of names that it is easy to get bogged down in, in the Iliad it is the listing of the names during combat. Thankfully, Herodotus only lists name when describing the gathering of troops and graciously saves us from more confusion. By contrast, the Iliad is about the Greek forces facing each other, where as, The Histories accounts for both the Persian and Greek forces. The descriptions of battle in both are mainly broad strokes, with the occasional addition of a named character who does specific, great things.
Have you read the The Histories? If so what did you think?
Does this inspire you to read the The Histories? If so tell me what you think when your done!
Buy a copy of the Histories
Like the Iliad, there is a multitude of names that it is easy to get bogged down in, in the Iliad it is the listing of the names during combat. Thankfully, Herodotus only lists name when describing the gathering of troops and graciously saves us from more confusion. By contrast, the Iliad is about the Greek forces facing each other, where as, The Histories accounts for both the Persian and Greek forces. The descriptions of battle in both are mainly broad strokes, with the occasional addition of a named character who does specific, great things.
Have you read the The Histories? If so what did you think?
Does this inspire you to read the The Histories? If so tell me what you think when your done!
Buy a copy of the Histories
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