Alexander of Macedon, 356-323 B.C.: A Historical Biography [Hardcover]

 

 

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Alexander was an enigmatic figure, to say the least. Peter Green provides us with a fabulously detailed, if somewhat dry--though often quite funny--account of his life. It is a very scholarly work; cross-referenced, annotated like mad and full of esoteric French and Latin idioms with English words I had to look-up in my UNABRIDGED dictionary. Still, you get the sense of a real person behind this legend--and it is fascinating, to say the least. Some repetitious language, combined with a cast of characters that would leave Pynchon scratching his head (Green himself acknowledges the frustration caused by so many duplicate names) make it a little hard to follow sometimes, but the narrative is strong and cohesive. I would have really appreciated a larger number of more detailed maps, since a few of the sites the book makes reference to aren't marked (a pipe-dream, I'm sure, since history itself seems to have swallowed a great deal of that information). The battle-plan graphics for Alexander's major confrontations were helpful in visualizing the scene set by Green's exposition. I recommend this book for anyone who wants a comprehensive study of the man who aspired to be a god.

Green's "Alexander of Macedon 356-323 B. C. : A Historical Biography", is a famous book which has had a great influence on not only general readers but also on serious scholars. I have much admiration for Green's lucid style and would accept his assertion that he wanted to discover the historical Alexander of flesh and blood stripped away from the accreted myth but I think he has miserably failed in this objective. Green rightly presents Alexander as the most incomparable general the world has ever seen but is not aware of the silent role Sasigupta played in many of his victories. He is totally unaware that Orontobates of Caria was none other than Diodotus of Erythrae of Caria and Tiridates who was at Persepolis. Throughout the work there is a deplorable tendency to carve out an Alexander from the most ghastly and detestable stories that one can lay hands on without for a moment bothering about the probity of the sources or the general scenario. Green mocks at Alexander's idea of Brotherhood of man and at the end what he offers us is essentially an unenlightened Elizabethan perspective. Unfortunately this propaganda has swayed the opinions of many unsuspecting modern historians of Alexander. About himself Prof. Green has recently written, "Professor David Halperin, rather flatteringly, has credited me with being a provocateur, a mischief maker-rather, one gathers, in the spirit of Sherlock Holmes, of whom it was said, in A Study in Scarlet, that he was quite capable of trying out the latest poison on his friends, not out of malice, but in the disinterested pursuit of scientific knowledge". From the recent Scotland Yard reports we now know a little more about the disinterested pursuit of Sherlock Holmes, but this spirit of frolic hardly befits the subject under study. As the great historian J.B. Bury stated, History, after allowing for all its uncertainties, remains a scientific pursuit of Truth and has some relation to the now-forgotten concept of morality. Through the Gedrosian desert Alexander was chasing the all- powerful Moeris (Chandragupta of Prasii). Green has no idea that the navy was carrying provisions for the army which was engaged in a grim and protracted battle. As a general Alexander can hardly be blamed for imposing a levy in order to arrange for the supplies for his army. This is why the people of Pattala had fled. Badian had totally misjudged the situation and had foolishly compared Alexander with Chengiz Khan and Green follows suit and turns history writing into a reckless propaganda exercise. Green's grasp of Indian or Iranian religion or society is extremely meagre. He has almost no time to reflect over the true nature of the Hellenistic miracle or eastern religions like Buddhism which benefited enormously from Alexander's intervention. In my opinion the book is famous for the wrong reasons.

A good book for overview of subject. I read it several years ago when I was devouring everything I could get my hands on to do with the subject matter.
I give it a 4-star rating for it's bibliography and for the author's modesty when he suggests that it is a subject requiring exhaustive and on-going enquiry. Also has excellent maps.
The work itself is broad in its scope a tour-de-force in this regard, but so too are many other works e.g., Hammond, Bosworth, Badian,Fox, Renault etc.. etc...To gain the most benefit from such a work further reading will make the study of this worthy subject in history much more enjoyable and worthwhile.
Perhaps Hammond's "The history of the Macedonian state"(?) would be a good companion to this book....
If you really want to get into it start with the ancient sources, the most accessable are Arrian and Plutarch. They may be a little difficult and enigmatic but you MUST read as much as you can because all authors on the subject of Alexander will refer to these two sources time and time again.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Very good
This book on Alexander the Great kept me turning pages, and I managed to finish it in under a week. It completely changed my understanding of this ancient king. Read more

Published on Dec 1 2009 by Ludwin

3.0 out of 5 stars Not for the faint of history
I bought this book about 15 years ago when my 7th grade teacher offered a lot of extra credit for it. I didn't read it then, and now I understand why he chose it. Read more

Published on April 16 2004 by Scott

5.0 out of 5 stars "Let the Strongest Rule"
I have to give this book my full recommendation. Green really has done his homework as he puts together the jig-saw puzzle of Alexander's life with brilliant clarity. Read more

Published on Nov 5 2003 by Greg

5.0 out of 5 stars Have sword and spear, will travel
Only occasionally have I read a work of history that's in the "can't put down" category. DISTANT MIRROR by Barbara Tuchman, MEN TO MATCH MY MOUNTAINS by Irving Stone,... Read more

Published on Oct 12 2003 by Joseph Haschka

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Introduction to Alexander
In the University I was a math major, but I have always been interested in history, and more particularly in ancient Greek and Roman history. Read more

Published on Aug 4 2003 by Gabriel Robert McNeill

3.0 out of 5 stars Cultural references really not needed
A very detailed accounting of Alex the Greats exploits
based upon numerous historical authors.

The book could very much benefit from additional
maps included in the... Read more

Published on July 29 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific
For someone reading their first book about Alexander the Great, I found this work easy to digest and comprehensive. Read more

Published on July 23 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars A compelling read
A terrific overview of Alexander the Great, his times, accomplishments and motivations. Extremely well-written, and fluid in its presentation of the personalities that impacted... Read more

Published on July 21 2003

4.0 out of 5 stars The "Real" Alexander?
Peter Green writes in his book an in-depth analysis of Alexander the Great's rise to power and conquests against the Persian Empire. Read more

Published on July 16 2003 by Dante Benigni

4.0 out of 5 stars What do you expect? It's a history book!
I bought this looking for one source on Alexander the Great, basically from birth to death, that's it. It was written in a format that makes sense, chronologically. Read more

Published on April 16 2003 by CT Iskander

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