Emily Baragwanath – författare

In his extraordinary story of the defence of Greece against the Persian invasions of 490-480 BC, Herodotus sought to communicate not only what happened, but also the background of thoughts and perceptions that shaped those events and became critical to their interpretation afterwards. Much as the contemporary sophists strove to discover truth about the invisible, Herodotus was acutely concerned to uncover hidden human motivations, whose depiction was vital to hisproject of recounting and explaining the past. Emily Baragwanath explores the sophisticated narrative techniques with which Herodotus represented this most elusive variety of historical knowledge. Thus he was able to tell a lucid story of the past while nonetheless exposing the methodological andepistemological challenges it presented. Baragwanath illustrates and analyses a range of these techniques over the course of a wide selection of Herodotus'' most intriguing narratives - from those on Athenian democracy and tyranny to Leonidas and Thermopylae - and thus supplies a method for reading the Histories more generally.

In his extraordinary story of the defence of Greece against the Persian invasions of 490-480 BC, Herodotus sought to communicate not only what happened, but also the background of thoughts and perceptions that shaped those events and became critical to their interpretation afterwards. Much as the contemporary sophists strove to discover truth about the invisible, Herodotus was acutely concerned to uncover hidden human motivations, whose depiction was vital to hisproject of recounting and explaining the past. Emily Baragwanath explores the sophisticated narrative techniques with which Herodotus represented this most elusive variety of historical knowledge. Thus he was able to tell a lucid story of the past while nonetheless exposing the methodological andepistemological challenges it presented. Baragwanath illustrates and analyses a range of these techniques over the course of a wide selection of Herodotus'' most intriguing narratives - from those on Athenian democracy and tyranny to Leonidas and Thermopylae - and thus supplies a method for reading the Histories more generally.

Herodotus, the ''Father of History'', is infamously known for having employed elements more akin to mythological tales than to unvarnished ''truth'' in translating his historical research into narrative form. While these narratives provide valuable source material, he could not have surmised the hostile reception his work would receive in later generations. This mythical aspect of the Histories led many successors, most notoriously Plutarch, to blame Herodotus for spinning far-fetched lies, and to set him apart as an untrustworthy historian. Echoes of the same criticism resounded in twentieth-century scholarship, which found it difficult to reconcile Herodotus'' ambition to write historical stories ''as they really happened'' with the choices he made in shaping their form. This volume brings together 13 original articles written by specialists in the fields of ancient Greek literature and history. Each article seeks to review, re-establish, and rehabilitate the origins, forms, and functions of the Histories'' mythological elements. These contributions throw new light on Herodotus'' talents as a narrator, underline his versatility in shaping his work, and reveal how he was inspired by and constantly engaged with his intellectual milieu. The Herodotus who emerges is a Herculean figure, dealing with a vast quantity of material, struggling with it as with the Hydra''s many-growing heads, and ultimately rising with consummate skill to the organisational and presentational challenges it posed. The volume ultimately concludes that far from being unrelated to the ''historical'' aspects of Herodotus'' text, the ''mythic'' elements prove vital to his presentation of history.

Xenophon was acknowledged in Antiquity as a philosopher, a historian (third in the triad of great Classical historians, alongside Herodotus and Thucydides), and a literary artist. His narrative was appreciated for its literary qualities including its charm, wit, vigour, and sweetness (for which he was hailed as ''Attic Muse'': Diogenes Laertius, 2.6.57). The Oeconomicus describes Socrates conversing on the topic of successful management of one''s oikos (household, estate). The focus is a well-to-do Athenian household, which proves a testing ground for the moral qualities or ''gentlemanliness'' of the male head of household, but also a space in which the role and agency of women turns out to be key. Symposium shifts to the male space of the men''s quarters of the private home, to describe an evening of conversation and entertainment at the house of an Athenian plutocrat. Far from being simply a lighthearted affair, the conversation probes timeless questions regarding wisdom, love, and female capacity, and over it looms the deadly serious matter of Socrates'' trial and death. Both works are rich sources for Athenian social history of the Classical period. Oeconomicus in particular offers insights on the role and status of women in Ancient Athens. Xenophon doesn''t, however, passively reflect the social realities he saw around him or supply snapshots of historical actuality.

Xenophon was acknowledged in Antiquity as a philosopher, a historian (third in the triad of great Classical historians, alongside Herodotus and Thucydides), and a literary artist. His narrative was appreciated for its literary qualities including its charm, wit, vigour, and sweetness (for which he was hailed as ''Attic Muse'': Diogenes Laertius, 2.6.57). The Oeconomicus describes Socrates conversing on the topic of successful management of one''s oikos (household, estate). The focus is a well-to-do Athenian household, which proves a testing ground for the moral qualities or ''gentlemanliness'' of the male head of household, but also a space in which the role and agency of women turns out to be key. Symposium shifts to the male space of the men''s quarters of the private home, to describe an evening of conversation and entertainment at the house of an Athenian plutocrat. Far from being simply a lighthearted affair, the conversation probes timeless questions regarding wisdom, love, and female capacity, and over it looms the deadly serious matter of Socrates'' trial and death. Both works are rich sources for Athenian social history of the Classical period. Oeconomicus in particular offers insights on the role and status of women in Ancient Athens. Xenophon doesn''t, however, passively reflect the social realities he saw around him or supply snapshots of historical actuality.

Xenophon was acknowledged in Antiquity as a philosopher, a historian (third in the triad of great Classical historians, alongside Herodotus and Thucydides), and a literary artist. His narrative was appreciated for its literary qualities including its charm, wit, vigour, and sweetness (for which he was hailed as 'Attic Muse': Diogenes Laertius, 2.6.57). The Oeconomicus describes Socrates conversing on the topic of successful management of one's oikos (household, estate). The focus is a well-to-do Athenian household, which proves a testing ground for the moral qualities or 'gentlemanliness' of the male head of household, but also a space in which the role and agency of women turns out to be key. Symposium shifts to the male space of the men's quarters of the private home, to describe an evening of conversation and entertainment at the house of an Athenian plutocrat. Far from being simply a lighthearted affair, the conversation probes timeless questions regarding wisdom, love, and female capacity, and over it looms the deadly serious matter of Socrates' trial and death. Both works are rich sources for Athenian social history of the Classical period. Oeconomicus in particular offers insights on the role and status of women in Ancient Athens. Xenophon doesn't, however, passively reflect the social realities he saw around him or supply snapshots of historical actuality.

In his extraordinary story of the defence of Greece against the Persian invasions of 490-480 BC Herodotus sought to communicate not only what happened, but also the background of thoughts and perceptions that shaped those events and became critical to their interpretation afterwards. Much as the contemporary sophists strove to discover truth about the invisible, Herodotus was acutely concerned to uncover hidden human motivations, whose depiction was vital to his project of recounting and explaining the past. Emily Baragwanath explores the sophisticated narrative techniques with which Herodotus represented this most elusive variety of historical knowledge. Thus he was able to tell a lucid story of the past while nonetheless exposing the methodological and epistemological challenges it presented. Baragwanath illustrates and analyses a range of these techniques over the course of a wide selection of Herodotus' most intriguing narratives - from those on Athenian democracy and tyranny to Leonidas and Thermopylae - and thus supplies a method for reading the Histories more generally.

In his extraordinary story of the defence of Greece against the Persian invasions of 490-480 BC, Herodotus sought to communicate not only what happened, but also the background of thoughts and perceptions that shaped those events and became critical to their interpretation afterwards. Much as the contemporary sophists strove to discover truth about the invisible, Herodotus was acutely concerned to uncover hidden human motivations, whose depiction was vital to his project of recounting and explaining the past. Emily Baragwanath explores the sophisticated narrative techniques with which Herodotus represented this most elusive variety of historical knowledge. Thus he was able to tell a lucid story of the past while nonetheless exposing the methodological and epistemological challenges it presented. Baragwanath illustrates and analyses a range of these techniques over the course of a wide selection of Herodotus' most intriguing narratives - from those on Athenian democracy and tyranny to Leonidas and Thermopylae - and thus supplies a method for reading the Histories more generally.