Author: Thomas Fleming
Herodotus, Books II-IV, Part One
Herodotus’ theme, as I observed in the first installment, is the conflict between Europe and Asia or, more properly, Greeks and barbarians. (In a day or two, we shall have a podcast on what barbarians are.) In a way, his work can be treated as a kind of essay in definition, that is, he is defining Greekness or Hellenism partly by describing Greek behavior and partly by the contrast, often merely suggested, with barbarians.
From Abraham to Napoleon: 4000 Years of Ethnic Conflict, Part I
This seems a good time to republish revised version of an essay from the book Peace in the Promised Land, published in 2005. I am by no means an expert on most of the periods discussed, but I have tried to grapple with the sources and with modern scholarship.
Tune Out
FB friend Patrick Mulvey posted a great comment on my previous scribbling:
“It may a small sample size but many of my babyboomer contemporaries and younger extended family members who suffer from ‘real’ mental illness…manic depression, bipolar disorder and worse…….all used illegal drugs regularly in their teens, 20’s and 30’s. I’m not saying this is the only cause of mental illness but one only has to look at our homeless problem and know that lack of housing is not the major reason.”
Herodotus, Book I
What is important to note in this first bit of history is his willingness to give different accounts and explanations and to allow readers to make up their own minds. It is not that he does not have opinions that he freely expresses, and he certainly, by an artful narrative style, leads us in one direction or another, but the final judgment is left up to the reader. Would we had such a writer to day.
Saving the Remnant, IV: The Fading of the West
Weakness, corruption, and the ongoing failure to control the peaceful settlement of non-Romans…
Hemingway, Stinker and Writer
Some people on FB are gassing on about what a stinker Hemingway was, and concluding therefore that he couldn’t write. Treating novelists as either heroes or demons, ideologues or intellectuals, is a grave mistake that is generally made by people who do not read, much less understand literature.
