Take a photo of a barcode or cover
estranger0 's review for:
The Histories
by Herodotus
Herodotus was no more than a man full of inquiries, but his fascination with the past and thirst for deeper meaning led him to create the first (non-fiction) book of the Western canon. Herodotus’ Histories is lengthy, intimidating, and challenging, but its reputation of being the gateway history books for anybody interested in the subject. The Histories is very fast-paced for its staggering 600 pages, a lot of what is mentioned is described in very readable and digestible passages that never fail to illustrate the reader an ancient world where the arrogance and pride of the Persians clash with the superior cunning and intelligence of the Greeks.
I don’t deny that this book is filled with a lot of mysticism, which is a generally known fact among readers of Herodotus. Being the first historian, mistakes were bound to be made regarding authenticity or continuity. Herodotus even put in multiple accounts of the same story based off of how different races recount it. Yet, even if the man was objectively wrong and obviously bias in some parts, the Histories is still surprisingly enjoyable with the amount of information it contains, whether the information concerns the customs of different races, how brutal the kings of the ancient world were, the ridiculous dependence of oracles and sacrifices, the pettiness and envy that rule all throughout the hierarchies of each nation, or how absurd life was then compared to now. Especially concerning life then to now… Herodotus says “If everyone in the world were able to bring their own problems along to market with the intention of trading them with his neighbors, a glimpse of the neighbors’ problems would make him glad to take back home the ones he came with.” Considering that my problems consist of missing out on reading time or staying up longer than I should have and that the average Greek male’s problems consisted of trying to be lucky enough not to get castrated as a boy and trying to fight for the entirety of Greece as a single warrior while also fighting dysentery, the Persians and their allies, and the constant possibility of being enslaved for the rest of your life and having your children killed, I’d gladly take my problems back home and rethink my life.
So much for the lives of the Greeks. Anyway, I’ve learned a lot from this one single history book, even if some of it was completely imaginary. From ego to humility, weakness to strength, honor to shame, the Histories is an forever-lasting fire of endless themes and interpretations that all surround an idea that Virgil penned almost 450 years after this book was first conceived: “Mind moves matter”.
I don’t deny that this book is filled with a lot of mysticism, which is a generally known fact among readers of Herodotus. Being the first historian, mistakes were bound to be made regarding authenticity or continuity. Herodotus even put in multiple accounts of the same story based off of how different races recount it. Yet, even if the man was objectively wrong and obviously bias in some parts, the Histories is still surprisingly enjoyable with the amount of information it contains, whether the information concerns the customs of different races, how brutal the kings of the ancient world were, the ridiculous dependence of oracles and sacrifices, the pettiness and envy that rule all throughout the hierarchies of each nation, or how absurd life was then compared to now. Especially concerning life then to now… Herodotus says “If everyone in the world were able to bring their own problems along to market with the intention of trading them with his neighbors, a glimpse of the neighbors’ problems would make him glad to take back home the ones he came with.” Considering that my problems consist of missing out on reading time or staying up longer than I should have and that the average Greek male’s problems consisted of trying to be lucky enough not to get castrated as a boy and trying to fight for the entirety of Greece as a single warrior while also fighting dysentery, the Persians and their allies, and the constant possibility of being enslaved for the rest of your life and having your children killed, I’d gladly take my problems back home and rethink my life.
So much for the lives of the Greeks. Anyway, I’ve learned a lot from this one single history book, even if some of it was completely imaginary. From ego to humility, weakness to strength, honor to shame, the Histories is an forever-lasting fire of endless themes and interpretations that all surround an idea that Virgil penned almost 450 years after this book was first conceived: “Mind moves matter”.