Herodotus
People, places, terms (identify, and define the significance)
Stories
Know the stories and be able to recall and spell names of the principal characters, starting from these titles; the exam will, for instance, say: “Tell the story of Cleobis and Biton.” You will also be asked to cite one or two themes that the story exemplifies (these can be bare bones —”deceit and trickery of tyrants/kings” — but must be recognizable major themes in Herodotus).
Thucydides
People, places, terms (identify, and define the significance)
- Croesus
- Solon
- Sardis, Lydia
- Hellespont
- Thermopylae
- Artemisium
- Salamis
- Isthmus of Corinth
- Cyrus
- Cambyses
- Darius
- Xerxes
- Mardonius
- Artabanus
- Artemisia
- Leonidas
- Themistocles
- historiê
- cycle of hybris - atê - nemesis (be ready to give a couple of examples)
- be prepared to list the 4 Persian Kings (Cyrus, Cambyses, Darius, Xerxes)
Stories
Know the stories and be able to recall and spell names of the principal characters, starting from these titles; the exam will, for instance, say: “Tell the story of Cleobis and Biton.” You will also be asked to cite one or two themes that the story exemplifies (these can be bare bones —”deceit and trickery of tyrants/kings” — but must be recognizable major themes in Herodotus).
- Snatchings of Women (Io, Europa, Medea, Helen)
- Gyges and the wife of Candaules
- Arion and the Dolphin
- Croesus and Solon
- Cleobis and Biton
- Atys and Adrastus
- Croesus and the testing of the oracles
- Deioces and the Rise of the Medes
- Birth and Upbringing of Cyrus
- Astyages and the Punishment of Harpagus
- Cyrus’ last campaign: the Massagetae
- Experiment of Psammetichus
- The Egyptian account of Helen and Alexander
- Rhampsinitus and the Thief
- Cambyses and the Apis bull
- Crisis and Constitutional Debate
- Sauromatae and the Amazons
- Darius challenges the Scythians and receives a gift (bird, mouse, frog, 5 arrows)
- Dionysius and the Battle of Lade
- The Battle of Marathon
- Xerxes’ dream and Artabanus
- Xerxes and the crossing of the Hellespont
- Thermopylae and the 300
- Themistocles and the battle of Salamis (including the “wooden walls”)
- Artemisia and the battle of Salamis (“my men are now women, and my women men”)
Thucydides
- Comparison of the historiography of Herodotus and Thucydides: be prepared to comment briefly, but with detail (specific examples) on the differences between the two
Pictured at top (close-up) and above: Darius I seated, with Xerxes standing behind him and Artabanus in front.
Relief from the north facade of the Apadana Stairway, Persepolis, c. 470 BC. National Museum of Iran, Tehran.
Relief from the north facade of the Apadana Stairway, Persepolis, c. 470 BC. National Museum of Iran, Tehran.
