Later Greece:
The Plague

Map Quiz Today!

Quote of the Day:

"As to the question of how it could first have come about or what causes can be found adequate to explain its powerful effect on nature, I must leave that to be considered by other writers, with or without medical experience.  I myself shall merely describe what it was like, and set down the symptoms, knowledge of which will enable it to be recognized, if it should ever break out again. I had the disease myself and saw others suffering from it" (Thuc. II.48).

Reading Assignment:

• The Peloponnesian War: A Brief Summary
• Chronology of Ancient Greek Civilization
• Matthews and Platt 68 (up to the beginning of the "Technology" section), 93-95
• Thucydides, "Pericles' Funeral Oration" and "The Plague," from History of the Peloponnesian War (Origins anthology 4-18)

Writing Assignment:

• Based on your reading of the entire selection from Thucydides, write an essay of about 1-2 pages contrasting the view of Athens presented in Thucydides' account of Pericles' Funeral Oration with that presented in his account of the plague.  Refer to specific passages in the texts to support your argument.
• Hint: For a question of this nature, it's best not to write one long section discussing the Oration followed by another long section discussing the Plague.  Rather, organize your essay according to the points you're making about Athens.  For an example of what I'm talking about, check out this classic George Carlin routine.  Notice that he doesn't say everything about football first, then everything about baseball--that wouldn't be funny.  His comparison is effective because of the way he organizes it.

Fun with Google Earth:

• Fly to Athens and zoom in on Piraeus, the harbor of Athens (spelled "Pireas" in modern Greek).  Imagine the Long Walls that connected Piraeus to the city proper.
• If you don't have Google Earth, you can download it here.

Terms:

Thucydides
Peloponnesian War
Long Walls
Alcibiades
Sicilian Expedition
Battle of Aegispotami

Links:
The Plague

• The Plague in Athens during the Peloponnesian War, article from Asklepion, site on ancient medicine
• "The Thucydides Syndrome:  Ebola Deja Vu (or Ebola Reemergent?)", from Emerging Infectious Diseases 2 (1996)

Thucydides and The Peloponnesian War

• The Peloponnesian War, from History of Western Civilization, E.L. Knox, Boise State Univ.
• Thucydides' The Peloponnesian War, from The Classical Origins of Western Culture, Roger Dunkle, Brooklyn College