The Character of Xenophon's Hellenica

The Character of Xenophon's Hellenica
Author: Vivienne Gray
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
Total Pages: 240
Release: 1989
Genre: History
ISBN:

Viviene Gray examinesthe Hellenika not as an account of historical events, but as piece of historical writing. In it, she attempts to discover the mentality of the writer.

Xenophon’s Peloponnesian War

Xenophon’s Peloponnesian War
Author: Aggelos Kapellos
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2019-09-23
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 3110668319

The advances in Xenophontic studies of the last generation have still not resulted in a definitive literary treatment of the Hellenica 1-2, so Xenophon’s description of the Peloponnesian War deserves closer examination. This book aims to show that Xenophon has crafted his narrative in such a way as to reinforce the opinion of Thucydides, whose work he continued, that the development of the Peloponnesian War depended to a great extent on Persian money, but the factors that ultimately determined its outcome were the moral virtues and the skills of the military leaders of Athens and Sparta. Regarding Athens, Xenophon wants to show that despite Persia’s support of Sparta, Athens lost the war because of its troubled relationship with Alcibiades; the moral disintegration of the Athenians who condemned illegally the Arginousai generals and the appointment of generals who were greatly inferior. Concerning Sparta, Xenophon leads his readers to believe that in spite of- not because of- the interference of Persia in the Peloponnesian War the moral and military qualities of Lysander and Callicratidas were what turned the course of the war either in favor of or against Sparta in each phase of the war.

The Cambridge Companion to Xenophon

The Cambridge Companion to Xenophon
Author: Michael A. Flower
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 545
Release: 2017
Genre: History
ISBN: 1107050065

Introduces Xenophon's writings and their importance for Western culture, while explaining the main scholarly controversies.

Xenophon's Cyrus the Great

Xenophon's Cyrus the Great
Author: Xenophon
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
Total Pages: 142
Release: 2007-04-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 142990531X

Cyrus, a great Persian leader, was so widely and memorably respected that a hundred years later, Xenophon of Athens wrote this admiring book about the greatest leader of his era. Larry Hedrick's Introduction describes Cyrus and his times. Among his many achievements, this great leader of wisdom and virtue founded and extended the Persian Empire; conquered Babylon; freed 40,000 Jews from captivity; wrote mankind's first human rights charter; and ruled over those he had conquered with respect and benevolence. According to historian Will Durant, Cyrus the Great's military enemies knew that he was lenient, and they did not fight him with that desperate courage which men show when their only choice is "to kill or die." As a result the Iranians regarded him as "The Father," the Babylonians as "The Liberator," the Greeks as the "Law-Giver," and the Jews as the "Anointed of the Lord." By freshening the voice, style and diction of Cyrus, Larry Hedrick has created a more contemporary Cyrus. A new generation of readers, including business executives and managers, military officers, and government officials, can now learn about and benefit from Cyrus the Great's extraordinary achievements, which exceeded all other leaders' throughout antiquity.

The Landmark Xenophon's Anabasis

The Landmark Xenophon's Anabasis
Author: Xenophon
Publisher: Pantheon
Total Pages: 673
Release: 2021-12-07
Genre: History
ISBN: 030790685X

The Landmark Xenophon’s Anabasis is the definitive edition of the ancient classic—also known as The March of the Ten Thousand or The March Up-Country—which chronicles one of the greatest true-life adventures ever recorded. As Xenophon’s narrative opens, the Persian prince Cyrus the Younger is marshaling an army to usurp the throne from his brother Artaxerxes the King. When Cyrus is killed in battle, ten thousand Greek soldiers he had hired find themselves stranded deep in enemy territory, surrounded by forces of a hostile Persian king. When their top generals are arrested, the Greeks have to elect new leaders, one of whom is Xenophon, a resourceful and courageous Athenian who leads by persuasion and vote. What follows is his vivid account of the Greeks’ harrowing journey through extremes of territory and climate, inhabited by unfriendly tribes who often oppose their passage. Despite formidable obstacles, they navigate their way to the Black Sea coast and make their way back to Greece. This masterful new translation by David Thomas gives color and depth to a story long studied as a classic of military history and practical philosophy. Edited by Shane Brennan and David Thomas, the text is supported with numerous detailed maps, annotations, appendices, and illustrations. The Landmark Xenophon’s Anabasis offers one of the classical Greek world’s seminal tales to readers of all levels.

The Hellenica Oxyrhynchia and Historiography

The Hellenica Oxyrhynchia and Historiography
Author: Egidia Occhipinti
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 317
Release: 2016-09-07
Genre: History
ISBN: 9004325786

This book involves a new historiographical study of the Hellenica Oxyrhynchia that defines its relationship with fifth- and fourth-century historical works as well as its role as a source of Diodorus’ Bibliotheke. The traditional and common approach taken by those who studied the HO is primarily historical: scholars have focused on particular, often isolated, topics such as the question of the authorship, the historical perspective of the HO against other Hellenica from the 4th century BC. This book is unconventional in that it offers a study of the HO and fifth- and fourth-century historical works supported by papyrological enquiries and literary strategies, such as intertextuality and narratology, which will undoubtedly contribute to the progress of research in ancient historiography.

Xenophon on Violence

Xenophon on Violence
Author: Aggelos Kapellos
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Total Pages: 210
Release: 2019-10-21
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 3110671468

This volume examines the issue of violence in Xenophon’s works, who lived in circumstances of war for many years. All the papers address issues of violence from different aspects. The exclusive focus on this issue is justified, since no previous detailed study exists on the subject. Most of the chapters focus on the Hellenica, because this work records more aspects of violence than the rest of his works. The volume is more concerned with examining violence in practice rather than the theory of violence, and violent practices are more frequently recorded in the Hellenica, which is the main historical work of Xenophon.This volume attempts to provide a comprehensive study of the subject of violence in Xenophon’s works and to demonstrate the coherence and consistency of his thought on it. This work aspires to be a contribution to classical scholarship since it attempts to: (1) shed further light on the literary character of Xenophon’s oeuvre; (2) offer new interpretation of passages and themes; and (3) put emphasis on passages that scholars have not pointed out and which offer important insights to the thought of Xenophon.

The Shorter Socratic Writings

The Shorter Socratic Writings
Author: Xenophon
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Total Pages: 220
Release: 2006
Genre: Philosophers
ISBN: 9780801472985

This book presents translations of three dialogues Xenophon devoted to the life and thought of his teacher, Socrates. Each is accompanied by notes and an interpretative essay that will introduce new readers to Xenophon and foster further reflection in those familiar with his writing. "Apology of Socrates to the Jury" shows how Socrates conducted himself when he was tried on the capital charge of not believing in the city's gods and corrupting the young. Although Socrates did not secure his own acquittal, he profoundly impressed some listeners who then helped to shape the public perception of philosophy as a noble, if highly idiosyncratic, way of life. In "Oeconomicus," Xenophon relates the conversation Socrates had on the day he turned from the study of natural philosophy to that of moral and political matters. "Oeconomicus" is concerned most directly with the character and purpose of Socrates' political philosophy. Xenophon provides entertaining portraits of Socrates' circle of friends in the "Symposium." In the process, he conveys the source of every individual's pride in himself, thus defining for each a conception of human excellence or virtue. The dialogue concludes with Socrates' beautiful speech on love (eros) and its proper place in the good or happy life.

Characterization in Ancient Greek Literature

Characterization in Ancient Greek Literature
Author: Koen De,Temmerman
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 721
Release: 2017-11-01
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 9004356312

This is the fourth volume in the series Studies in Ancient Greek Narrative. The book deals with the narratological concepts of character and characterization and explores the textual devices used for purposes of characterization by ancient Greek authors from Homer to Heliodorus.

Xenophon on Government

Xenophon on Government
Author: Xenophon
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 12
Release: 2007-05-17
Genre: Art
ISBN: 0521581540

Xenophon of Athens was a pupil of Socrates and a philosopher in his own right. He wrote two of the texts included in this volume, the Hiero (On Tyranny) and the Constitution of the Spartans. The third, the Constitution of the Athenians, is found under Xenophon's name alongside the other two in the manuscripts. The works represent three distinct types of government (the rule of one man in tyranny and kingship, the rule of law in the mixed constitution of the Spartans, and the rule of the masses in the Athenian democracy), but there are common features throughout. This volume presents an introduction discussing Xenophon's views on government in the context of his general political thought, drawing particularly on his Socratic work Memorabilia, and a commentary on the Greek text of each work aimed primarily at advanced undergraduates and graduate students.