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The Peloponnesian War
- Narrated by: Charlton Griffin
- Length: 26 hrs and 17 mins
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The Peloponnesian War
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Summary
Historians universally agree that Thucydides was the greatest historian who has ever lived, and that his story of the Peloponnesian conflict is a marvel of forensic science and fine literature. That such a triumph of intellectual accomplishment was created at the end of the fifth century B.C. in Greece is, perhaps, not so surprising, given the number of original geniuses we find in that period. But that such an historical work would also be simultaneously acknowledged as a work of great literature and a penetrating ethical evaluation of humanity is one of the miracles of ancient history. For in the pages of Thucydides we find examples of every ethical and political problem ever faced by democratic governments in the last 2,400 years. And it was all organized and written with a breathtaking skill and dramatic intensity which have never been equalled.
Thucydides was an Athenian noble born around 455 B.C. whose antecedents could be traced back to the great Peisitratus and Cimon. In 424 B.C., Thucydides was in command of naval forces attempting to defend Amphipolis in Thrace. Although unsuccessful through no fault of his own, his enemies in Athens blamed him for failure and engineered his exile. It was a fortunate event, for it was upon this accident of history that Thucydides gained the opportunity to become the chronicler of events in Greece. In complete contrast to the furious passions which raged around him, he described events with a cool detachment and an absolute impartiality that is little short of miraculous. He is believed to have died violently, perhaps while writing, in about 400 B.C. His manuscript simply breaks off in mid paragraph.
The Peloponnesian War is organized into eight parts (“books”). This recording uses the highly esteemed translation of Benjamin Jowett. There are several essays preceding and following the work.
What listeners say about The Peloponnesian War
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tony
- 13-12-18
Pioneering historical work
A seminal historical text. The style of the performance is well suited to the text.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- stephen summers
- 05-09-20
Bronze Age World at War
A masterpiece orated excellently by the inestimable Charlton Griffin. The language and prose brings the subject matter vividly to life.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- A. baldwin
- 13-04-13
helps get through the text
useful to keep focus on the text. Helped me finish the reading. pleased with purchase would recommend the purchase
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- AHW
- 04-08-15
Fantastic & full! Valued added cntnt. x1.25 speed.
Great rendition, fair length (as unabridged) and enjoyed throughout. Having read the text it was fantastic, as listening gives a slightly different tack on visualising the battles / events as described. Recommend listening at x1.25 speed. Additional post analysis was good addition. Obv. purely ornamental, but enjoyed the musical interludes that punctuate the volumes greatly, and they add nicely to the athmosphere.
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Daniel Gallagher
- 11-09-20
A quintessential classic from the first historian
TL;DR: quite drawn out but worth the investment, a good addition to a reader’s library who is interested in classical history.
Charlton Griffin gave this book quite the epic feel. Although that epic feel got tedious at points I felt that no other approach could be taken without emphasising properly the scale of the history itself.
Given that the histories itself is finished by a short epilogue detailing the reliability of Thucydides’ work I felt I was being read a proper documentation from source with all the hallmarks of a genuine account of history. Specifically the documentation on the plague and the origin of the Thucydides Trap.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Amazons Customer
- 26-04-16
singing narrator
the annoyingly singing voice made me stop listening soon,what a shame. Will look for another version
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
- Sarah Nias
- 30-01-22
dreadful delivery
terrible, portentous and elocuted voice and delivery . Impossible to listen to. turned off after 10 minuted
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Peter De Rop
- 26-12-18
Really bad
The reader distracts way too much from the excellent story, by his exagerated accent.
Not worth the money.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- MH Dunc
- 18-09-18
Epic story spoilt by bizarre narration.
The startling and bizarre staccato delivery of the narrator completely spoils this epic story. At first I thought it was a computer generated voice, such is the strangeness of the style! Totally distracts from the material - I spent so much time listening to the ludicrous delivery that I missed much of the actual content.
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1 person found this helpful