Herotodus

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses and analyzes Herodotus' "Histories". Specifically, the paper looks at how, in this work, Herodotus uses emotionally charged material and even what can be called propaganda, to carry the torch for Greek cultural dominion. In particular, the paper notes Herodotus' emphasis on Greek cultural superiority versus Persian Barbarism, the great lengths Herodotus goes to in order to describe the Persians as heathens, and how his objective, in writing "Histories", was to inspire pan-Hellenic pride and help strengthen the Greek empire.

From the Paper:

"A core concern of Herodotus in his Histories is the fragmentation of Greek culture itself. One of the main reasons Herodotus emphasizes the binary division between Greeks and Barbarians was because of the need to create a new pan-Hellenic identity. Herodotus' affection for Greek culture might have been rooted in his ability to compare the various Greek city-states with the cultures he witnessed while on his travels abroad. Like a precursor to the modern state, the pan-Hellenic identity united disparate peoples of the Aegean peninsula and its islands based on shared ideologies. The Greeks not only found common ground in their shared religious and philosophical beliefs but also in their mutual mistrust of outsiders. Persians became the external enemy of the whole Hellenic empire, even though the peoples of Sparta, Athens, Delphi, Macedonia, and throughout the Aegean had no centralized government. Herodotus tells the story of the Persian invasions for two main reasons: first to inspire pan-Hellenic pride and second to help strengthen a Greek empire".

Sample of Sources Used:

• Herodotus. Histories. Translated by George Rawlinson. Retrieved online Aug 2, 2008 from Internet Classics Archive at http://classics.mit.edu/Herodotus/history.html
• Lendering, J. Herodotus of Halicarnassus. Retrieved Aug 2, 2008 from http://www.livius.org/he-hg/herodotus/herodotus07.html

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