Customer Reviews

The Outbreak of the Peloponnesian War (Cornell Paperbacks)

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It is difficult for me to describe the genius that lies behind Kagan's magisterial four-volume history of the Peloponnesian War. Kagan's command of his subject matter is breath taking. But the reason that you want this to be THE book you read about the Peloponnesian War is as follows:

Kagan provides the single most compelling synthesis of the reasons the war took place together with a beautifully measured study of the participant's motivations. His technique is brilliant. First the bare facts are set out. Then Thucydides opinions are canvassed. There follows a startlingly lucid summary of the major points of view as published by other historians. Then Kagan offers HIS view. At the conclusion you slap yourself on the knee and find yourself invariably saying, "Well, of COURSE, it's OBVIOUS".

But, in point of fact, it isn't obvious at all - but Kagan makes it SEEM obvious. And for that he required, and exhibits, a truly astounding understanding of human nature.

I have seen it written that Kagan lapses into un-translated Latin, Greek and German. I went back to my copies to see if I could find examples of this - and was unable to find more than a handful (if one doesn't count the footnotes - and even there foreign languages are scarce).

Kagan's principal thesis in this, the first of the four books, is that the Peloponnesian war was NOT, contrary to Thucydides' opinion, inevitable, but was in fact avoidable up to the last moment. This thesis is developed with tremendous force of logic. The prose is fluid, and even limpid.

You will need maps. The first volume contains none. Though the second volume has a few. My suggestion is that you have the Landmark Thucydides to hand - it has seemingly THOUSANDS of maps. But I also recommend the "Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World" -- a MUST for any person with a classical bent. I am not sure one needs to have read Thucydides - as some have suggested. After all, Kagan's object is to write THE comprehensive history of that event. But this clearly is a university level text. I read the Landmark Thucydides first - though I am not sure I benefited from it. You will certainly want to read it afterwards.

Kagan's understanding of this ancient conflict prepared him very nicely for an extraordinary book, "On the Origins of War and the Preservations of Peace." If ever there was a MUST READ book for our times, it is that one. In this book, Kagan develops a thesis on the origins of war and provides a trenchant recipe for the avoidance of war.

I rate this book on a par with Ronald Syme's "Roman Revolution" (Though HERE is someone guilty of not bothering to translate greek and latin for we plebs!). You need read NO other modern account.

I am reviewing all 4 volumes in the series. Overall, an exceptionally thorough and well researched work. The author's love of the subject matter is clearly evident. There is an assumption of reader familiarity with the subject, and I would read the Landmark Thucydides and Plutarch's Lives (on the Athenians) befor tackling these books. The first volume suffers from a lack of maps, which the other books rectify, and I thought that more information at the end on the aftermath of the Peloponnesian War was needed. These criticisms however do not distract from my admiration of a monumental effort. I recommend these books to anyone interested in ancient Greece, or military/political history.

This book, and the other three in the series, are for serious readers only. But presumably you know that, if you're reading this. You'll need to read Thucydides first, at least once; it wouldn't hurt to read Xenophon's Hellenica as well, not to mention all the extant plays of Aristophanes. Oh, and maybe a history or two on the Greco-Persian Wars.

If you can do/have done all that, then these four volumes are a rare treat. I think Kagan is very clever. He writes sober, judicious history, but he does it in a very amiable, companionable way. You get the sense that one of your favorite professors from your college days has dropped by to tell you a little story, one of those "little stories" that expands and expands until you lose track of time and place, drawn into his web. I think Kagan wrote these books that way deliberately, with an eye toward a wider audience than the usual scholarly tome. Perhaps that engenders some snickering or sneering among the academic types. Let them sneer. These books are nothing if not highly readable.

How does Kagan stack up as a scholar? I don't know. He certainly provides an exhaustive overview of the scholarship written up to the time these volumes were written, and he's always very clear to describe where he stands in contrast to other scholars. How those scholars view him, and what scholarship has concluded since the publication of these books, remain unknown to me. I'm a serious reader, but not *that* serious. My days of digging through scholarly journals and publications to find anything and everything on a given topic are long behind me.

It hardly matters, though. These books are of the highest value strictly for their sheer entertainment value. If they are also of the highest schloraly caliber, then so much the better. But to tell you the truth, I wouldn't care if Kagan was a baldfaced liar. I would enjoy the books all the same.

I cannot tell you how well this book manages to balance its caution and its thoroughness with a certain readability that, while not a narrative, is nevertheless reminiscent of a narrative. One ought to be familiar with the basic events of fifth century Greece before reading this book, and Kagan does tend to drop into Latin, Greek and German without bothering to translate for the reader. I would also recommend having an atlas of the region, or at least one good map. Kagan's references to events sometimes presupposes a high degree of classical literacy, so I would not recommend this to a beginner. On the other hand, he is very inclusive of the major historians and heavily footnotes them, which enables the reader to get a very good idea of what to read if he/she finds one topic of interest that needs expanding. Also, a basic knowledge of Greek wouldn't hurt the reader, but it is not necessary. Other books to read to prepare for this weighty volume might be the original texts in question (Thucydides, Plutarch's Lives, etc) might be in order. Finally, Michael Grant's "The Classical Greeks" is a far less detailed narrative on the century that is excellent for beginners.

If you have any interest in ancient history, do yourself a favor and read all four volumes of Kagan's four volume treatise on the Peloponessian War. This is history at its finest. His writing style gracefully combines detailed historical analysis with his own ideas on what the historical record leaves for our speculation. All of this in what reads like a narrative history. Having a copy of Thucydides handy will only add to the experience. Kagan's one volume version is good, but reading the four volume series takes it to a level that any serious fan of ancient history will enjoy. Definitely worth the investment of time and money.

The Peloponnesian War, along with the myriad feuds that latched on to the central conflict between Sparta and Athens in the latter half of the fifth century BCE, can be an exhausting subject. The civil and international politics involved in fostering and perpetuating the war rival even today's most complex conflicts.

In this, the first of four volumes on the subject, Kagan skillfully presents, comments on, and refutes the hypotheses presented by history and historians, while still managing a very approachable narrative.

For the historian, or avid history buff (however you might self-identify), these works are a necessary addition to your library. The more casual reader might, however, consider purchasing Kagan's abridged work entitled simply "The Peloponnesian War." It includes the main thrust of the narrative, but with markedly less analysis of the political motivations included in these volumes.

A tough one to have to write, but absolutely necessary to understand the conflict, Kagan makes this volume the tone-setting opening movement of his four-volume symphony. The prose is easy to follow despite the reliance on names/dates, and Kagan challenges the reader by not only relating the facts but providing provocative insights. Kagan has no peers when it comes to writing history -- he is the very best.