Herodotus: I love the Spartans

I do love the Spartans; sacrificing all for the sake of the Motherland, repelling the barbarian.....ooga boogah.

Herodotus is a masterpiece. It is unsurpassed in all history; and is, in my opinion, better history than modern history. It is fundamentally no different; Herodotus traveled around Asia Minor asking questions about the Persian War and modern historians do the same. They, however, present only one view. Herodotus presents many, even if/when they differ from his own presented view.

Are some customs worse than others? What is freedom? What is liberty? What is tyranny?

Questions like this arose constantly during the three seminars we had on Herodotus. I could not detail everything that happened; my discussion of natural rights with Mr. Carey, the discussions regarding the Athenians and Spartans, and much more. The Histories is such a rich work and is in such a broad scope that one reading is not sufficient; I will need to read it again over Break.

The main difference with Herodotus as opposed to modern historians is his use of tangents in his History. But they always illustrate his point (well, most of the time) and underscore customs, peoples, and nations. We get the story behind the war, not just the facts. And that, I firmly think, is what history is all about. Granted, we do feel a bit like Alice in Wonderland at times, but Herodotus always brings us home. And that makes him a great historian.

To Meno!