History of the Peloponnesian War

History of the Peloponnesian War

• Genre: Nonfiction; History; Ancient Literature
• Originally Published: 1874
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 1030L; College/Adult
• Structure/Length: Approximately 410 pages; audiobook length approximately 22 hours and 36 minutes
• Central Concern: History of the Peloponnesian War provides a detailed account of the conflict between the Athenian Empire and the Peloponnesian League, led by Sparta, which spanned from 431 to 404 BC. Thucydides, an Athenian general turned historian, provides an analytical and often critical view of the war's events, leaders, and decisions, offering insight into the nature of power, politics, and human behavior. The work stands as one of the earliest and most significant accounts of war and is renowned for its deep exploration of cause and effect in history.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Descriptions of war, strategies, plagues, and death.

Thucydides, Author

• Bio: Born c. 460 BC; died c. 400 BC; Athenian historian and general; exiled for a period after failing to prevent the capture of a city during the war, which allowed him to travel and gather accounts from various participants; his historical methodology and critical analysis have had a profound impact on subsequent historical writings
• Other Works: While Thucydides is primarily known for History of the Peloponnesian War, fragments of other potential works and speeches have been attributed to him, though none are as renowned or complete as his magnum opus.

CENTRAL THEMES  connected and noted throughout this Teaching Guide:

• Nature, Chance, and Human Decision-Making as Primary Causal Agents
• History as a Repeating Cycle

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Teaching Guide, students will:

• Gain an understanding of the cultural and historical contexts of Thucydides’s work.
• Discuss paired texts and other brief resources to make connections via the text’s themes of Nature, Chance, and Human Decision-Making as Primary Causal Agents and History as a Repeating Cycle.
• Analyze and debate the actions of Alcibiades to demonstrate an understanding of the political scene in Classical Athens as presented by Thucydides.
• Evaluate the speeches and themes of Thucydides’s work to draw conclusions in structured essay responses regarding Thucydides’s historical methodology, the role of the gods, and other topics.