Study Questions for Assignment 12 -- Herodotus, Histories
The "feud" mentioned in the introductory paragraph and "quarrel" in the first sentence of second paragraph, is the great war between the Greeks and the Persians (the "Barbarians")--the Persian Wars. The whole first half of Herodotus is background to the War, and the second half of the Book is about the war itself. Therefore, a little information about the War will be very helpful. For a good brief overview of the Persian Wars, go to this site, and then scroll down to section 8.3 and read from there to section 8.4.3. Each section is very short (a paragraph or so) and this will not take you long. It's an excellent summary of the War.
- I. Introductory paragraph: What does Herodotus say his purpose is in writing this history?
- I.2-5 How does the account in these pages differ from Homer's account? Why doesn't Homer give differing accounts of events as Herodotus does?
- I.30-33 Explain Solon's view of happiness. What is the difference between happiness and good fortune? How can tell when someone is happy?
- I.46-54 How did Croesus go about testing the veracity of the oracles? Might Jehovah actually have spoken through the pagan oracles?
- I.88-89 Why did Croesus' statement "What they are sacking and pillaging is yours." have such an impact on Cyrus?
- I.90-91 What are the subtleties in the Oracles' statements that lead Croesus to his downfall? What was Apollo's answer to Croesus's complaint? What parallel might there be between Orual in "Till We Have Faces" and Croesus?
- I.97 What situation leads the Medes to desire a king over them?
- I.129 Why does Astyages call Harpagus the "stupidest and most unjust man alive"?
- I.191 Where in the Bible do we read of the events recounted in this section?
- I.196 How did the Babylonians make sure that all of their girls were married, the pretty as well as the homely?
- I.197 How do they cure their sick?
- II.19-25 How does Herodotus explain the swelling and flooding of the Nile at certain seasons of the year? What reasoning makes him discard what we know is the real cause?
- What does Herodotus seem most interested in throughout his Book?
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