The History of the Peloponnesian War
Thucydides
Contains spoilers for the entire book.
Discussion topics
Topic 01 of 08
A possession for all time
What does Thucydides say he is trying to do, and how is his history different from Herodotus or the poets?
Keep the conversation going
- How do you read his admission that he made up the speeches to say what was called for?
- Why does he think his work will be useful to future readers?
There is no single right answer. Bring your own reading.
Discussion topics
What does Thucydides say he is trying to do, and how is his history different from Herodotus or the poets?
Keep the conversation going
- How do you read his admission that he made up the speeches to say what was called for?
- Why does he think his work will be useful to future readers?
Why does Thucydides say the real cause of the war was the growth of Athenian power and the fear it caused in Sparta?
Keep the conversation going
- How does that differ from the quarrels over Corcyra and Potidaea that set it off?
- Where else in history do you see the same pattern?
What picture of Athens does Pericles give in the Funeral Oration, and how much of it do you believe?
Keep the conversation going
- Why does he say so little about the dead and so much about the city?
- How did you respond to his words to the widows?
How does Thucydides's account of the plague in Athens follow straight on from the Funeral Oration, and what does that order do?
Keep the conversation going
- What does the plague do to law, religion and honour in the city?
- Why do you think he describes his own illness so plainly?
In the debate over Mytilene, which do you find more persuasive, Cleon's case for punishment or Diodotus's case for mercy?
Keep the conversation going
- Why does Diodotus argue from Athenian interest rather than justice?
- What did you make of the second ship racing to stop the massacre?
What does Thucydides mean when he says that in the civil war at Corcyra words changed their meanings?
Keep the conversation going
- Why does he call war a rough master?
- Have you seen something like this in politics since?
How did you respond to the Athenians' claim to the Melians that the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must?
Keep the conversation going
- Were the Melians brave or foolish to refuse?
- Why do you think Thucydides gives this exchange in the form of a dialogue?
What went wrong with the Sicilian expedition, from Alcibiades's recall to Nicias's last stand?
Keep the conversation going
- How much of the disaster was bad luck, and how much bad judgement?
- What does the war as a whole suggest about how democracies make war?
There is no single right answer. Bring your own reading.