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The Peloponnesian War cover art

The Peloponnesian War

By: Kenneth W. Harl, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Kenneth W. Harl
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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.

©2007 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2007 The Great Courses

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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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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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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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Difficult to follow

I found this unclear and confusing. Overly complex and academic. The lecturer throws so much random information at you that you can't follow the storyline. It feels like he's keen for you to know how much he knows about all this

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Genuinely fantasric

Honestly loved listening to this, The oration is so engaging. Am now away to seek out more by Kenneth Harl!

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Fantastic

One of the best lecture series that I have had the pleasure to listen to.

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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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A treat.

Kept my intetrest throughout the entire course. Especially those sections that focused on the spartans.

recommended.

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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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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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