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I found an interesting article on an upcoming paper about Alexander the Great and the possible cause for his erratic behavior: CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy), the same problem many American football players experience after multiple concussions. [Note: link has been updated to go to the published Athens Journal of History article.] A quote from the […]
Alexander’s Lost World is a 6 x 60” series coproduced with David Adams Films and Sky Vision. Following the course of the River Oxus (Amu Darya) for the first time, Adams takes viewers on an extraordinary 1,500-mile (2400 km) journey through war-torn Afghanistan and Central Asia. The Ancient Greeks have long been credited for bringing […]
I participated in the Reading Odyssey‘s reading of Arrian’s The Campaigns of Alexander this year and wanted to gather all the conference calls in one place. Reading Odyssey “is a partnership between scholars and readers” aiming “to reignite curiosity and lifelong learning.” I enjoyed participating in this program and highly recommend future programs. The listed […]
The Landmark Arrian: The Campaigns of Alexander Edited by James Romm, Series Editor Robert B. Strassler, Translation by Pamela Mensch, Introduction by Paul CartledgeIf you haven’t noticed by now, I am a huge fan of the Landmark series, created by Robert B. Strassler. If you haven’t picked up a volume in the series, check out […]
Though I have myself had occasion to find fault with some of Alexander’s deeds in the course of my history of them, I am not ashamed to admire Alexander himself. If I have condemned certain acts of his, I did so out of my own regard for truth and also for the benefit of mankind. […]
Anyone who reproaches Alexander should not simply cite those deeds that deserve to be reproached. Instead, after collecting in one place all of Alexander’s qualities, let his critic then consider who he is and what sort of fortune he has had that he reproaches Alexander, a man who became so great and attained such a […]
”I was now going to send back those of you who are unfit for war, to be envied by those at home. But since you all wish to go, be gone, all of you, and report, when you get home, that Alexander, your king, who conquered the Persians, Medes, Bactrians, and Sacae, who subjugated the […]
Alexander’s return from IndiaIn an attempt to get back on track with Arrian and the Reading Odyssey book group I’ll do a post for Book Six on Arrian’s The Campaigns of Alexander. With so much material, one post obviously won’t cover everything but I’ll highlight a few things I found interesting. The first topic occurs […]
Thus, even wholly trustworthy writers who kept company with Alexander at the time do not agree in their writings about events that were public and known to them personally. – From 4.14.3, all quotes from The Landmark Arrian: The Campaigns of Alexander, translation by Pamela Mensch Arrian seems to give the game away on his […]
Alexander and Porus, Charles Le Brun (1673) Picture sourceI wanted to highlight a few of the good, bad and really bad things that happen in these pages. If pointing out Alexander’s dark side makes me “mean, obscure and dull”, so be it. The Good Alexander solidifies his reputation for military genius in many different and […]