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The Peloponnesian War
- Narrated by: Kenneth W. Harl
- Length: 18 hrs and 2 mins
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The Peloponnesian War
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Summary
The Peloponnesian War pitted Athens and its allies against a league of city-states headed by Sparta. The ancient Greek historian Thucydides captured this drama with matchless insight in his classic eyewitness account of what was arguably the greatest war in the history of the world up to that time.
These 36 half-hour lectures draw on Thucydides' classic account as well as other ancient sources to give you a full picture of the Greek world in uneasy peace and then all-out war in the late 5th century B.C. Professor Harl plunges you into the thick of politics, military strategy, economics, and technology.
You will feel the ancient Greek world come alive as you explore the war debates at Athens and Sparta, the devastating plagues that swept through Athens, the Revolt of Mytilene, the Battle of Pylos, the disastrous Athenian and Spartan expedition to Sicily against Spartan allies. You'll experience the thick of action and consider lively scholarly debates that continue to this day.
Unlike earlier great wars, the Peloponnesian War was not a conflict between kings, but between citizens from different city-states who shared the same language, gods, and festivals. Citizen assemblies decided questions of war - voting on their own fates, since they were the ones who had to do the fighting.
One of the most remarkable aspects of this era is that culture flourished side-by-side with the politics of war - that, even as Athenian citizens were honoring Aristophanes' mocking antiwar play, The Acharnians, by giving it first prize in a drama competition, they were debating with equal ardor whether to continue the war, and deciding overwhelmingly to do so.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Deus
- 18-10-16
Balanced narrative
It was an enjoyable experience. A very balanced review of the war. He tried his best to entertain the viewpoints of both belligerents without choosing favorites despite the obvious Athenian bias of the contemporary western tradition.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 07-08-22
Everything in context
Kenneth Harl puts the 27-year struggle between Sparta and Athens into the context of the evolving Greek city state and the simmering conflict between the Greek-speaking peoples and the Persians. It is easy to see how contemporary issues such as liberal democracy versus totalitarianism are projected back onto the period, but Kenneth Harl often shows that this a simplistic interpretation.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Christopher
- 21-07-17
Best Great Course that I've listened to
Would you consider the audio edition of The Peloponnesian War to be better than the print version?
The story was definitely improved by the exciting manner in which Professor Harl told it.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Yes, definitely, I tend to listen to audiobooks on the train, but I would continue to listen after my journey was complete, even if I had things to do. Totally addictive listen
Any additional comments?
I've listened to a lot of the Great Courses, particularly history courses, and this is probably the best one. Very good listen.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 14-09-19
Great Introduction
Excellent easy to concentrate on concise sections. Recommended! It really was a good listening experience
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- Mr
- 03-06-18
outstanding series of lectures by a brilliant prof
outstanding series of lectures by a brilliant professor who both knows and is passionate about his subject.
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- Benjamin Milton
- 28-02-23
Fantastic! Best lectures series I’ve heard in years!
Kenneth is a master orator with the knowledge to back it up. His passion for the subject shines thru and he makes this ancient history imminently relevant. Would recommend to anyone!
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- Manish
- 18-05-18
Peloponnesian Wars
This is a.great set of lectures. However it is more of a political and economic history rather than a military history. I found there was too much on the introduction and less on military tactics for each battle. For this Donald Kagan's book is probably better.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 21-09-17
Beautiful and virtuous Sparta
Goes against the grain of the predominant historical analyses (and vilification) of Sparta's role in these wars, and manages to do it with some justification, These are very complex and intricately wound events, but Harl manages to extricate them well, displaying an impressive knowledge of the subject matter. He uses Thucydides as his primary inspiration and source.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Sebastian Jönsson
- 12-11-22
A treat.
Kept my intetrest throughout the entire course. Especially those sections that focused on the spartans.
recommended.
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- Iain G.
- 13-09-21
great
very good outline deals with the war at the same depth as Thusidides with a engaging and enthusiastic lecturer. fab.
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