/lit/ - Literature

>>22135129
You can skip parts you don't enjoy or care about

>>22135222
But then /lit/ will mock me!

>>22135316
yea, we will call you the f-word

>>22135318
Oh god, not the f-word.

>>22135129
Who ever said that it would be easy? I am reading it too, in Ionic, and I do not know many words of Ionic. I feel trolled by my old teacher in Greek but that's my perspective, not per say her intention; I'll just stick to reading it and hope that I'll get the joke later on.

>>22135338
Your Latin's not quite up to scratch either.

>>22135129
Pretty important if you want to know which oracle to go to and for which purpose, which was of paramount importance to the ancient mind that consulted oracles on every significant and mundane decision. See the Anabasis by Xenophon which begins with Socrates telling Xenophon to go to Delphi and ask the oracle if he should join the army, and the army performing an augury sacrifice by the army's resident prophet officer each morning to decide if and where they should march.

>>22135129
just stop being a pleb

>>22135129
I unironically put the book down after either book 1 or 2. It's way too fucking long and I was not gaining anything from it

>>22135598
How the fuck can people through history be so fucking dumb bros?
>DUH Lets ask this literal random nobody how to handle our deadly and important army tactics
Holy FUCK people died because of this shit

>he doesn't find Herodotus fun or comfy
lol how?

>>22135693
It's incredible. I weep for ameribros that can't enjoy Herodotus. What isn't interesting about learning about an unimaginably ancient culture's way of life? I can't imagine it. Baffling

>>22135129
>ancient account of foreigner in ancient Egypt is not interesting
perhaps history is not for you?

>>22135708
>unimaginably ancient culture
not so ancient, only in the sense of history

>>22135708
OP might just write US English because ESL on internet. I don't think it's simply explicable by dumb American memes because I think even Americans would mostly understand his stories to be funny and comfy. Perhaps I'm overestimating Americans in general, but I'd wager this is a more OP specific kind of lack of fun rather than his WASP progenitors shining through.

>>22135129
Herodotus' Histories are focused on two subjects: the causes and deeds pertaining to the Persian wars, and the manifold of customs of other peoples to show what makes the Greeks distinct .

>>22135598
That story has another purpose, namely, to show the difference between Socrates and Xenophon. Socrates tells Xenophon to ask one question, Xenophon asks a different one, and Socrates playfully rebukes him for his impudence.

>>22135679
>pEePo DiEd!!1brooooos!!!!1!
That's what people do. We die. The ones who mattered made it home.
>people are so ignorant, its unbelievable!
What are you going to do about it?

>>22135679
>History
Reagan and his wife had astrology guiding them

>learned persians say that the war was caused by the phoenicians

Does western historiography unironically start with a "da jooz" accusation?

>>22135679
Incredibly Reddit. Please lurk 2 more years before opening your pseud mouth again.

>>22135679
The abandonment of augury and it's consequences has been a disaster for the human race.

>>22135129

>>22135679
newfag

>>22135129
You think that's bad, wait till you get to Thucydides peloponesian war.

>>22135129
>not finding all that compulsively interesting
OP is, as ever, a faggot.

>>22135749
Based Ronnie.

>>22135749
Daily reminder that Reagan served two terms and won the Cold War.

>>22135721
OP may not be american but i'm a burger and you are definitely overestimating us

>>22136932
ancient historians aren't like this, though
they understood how to be critical of reported events and to use reason in assessing them, and to clarify that they are indeed reported
of course, herodotus was not perfect and there are episodes when he obviously did not visit the place due to his faulty information (his idea of medical practices in babylonia, for example)

>>22135222
You will find difficult to understand following chapters although in this particular case, the Egypt chapter isn't very important to understand the Greco-Persian wars.

>>22138513
>babylonia
Great zigurat was confirmed anon

>>22139103
you mean the etemenanki?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etemenanki

>>22135129
I thought the Egypt bit was great, especially when the king went blind after whipping the Nile. Told by an Oracle that only the urine of a woman who had only slept with 1 man could cure him, he had numerous women piss on his face until it worked. After which he gathered the other women into a building, locked them in and set fire to it. Or that Kheops forced his daughter into prostitution, she bought 1 stone with every customer and built a pyramid.

>>22135129
Boy, just wait until he starts talking about european river, their springs, their water, if they are bitter or sweet... Oh boy, you don't know what is pain yet
Thank god we have Thucydides to cleanse our eyes and give us a straight narrative

>>22135679
Except oracles weren't random nobodies but extremely important and politically powerful.

>>22135129
Book 2 is unironically the hump that one must overcome to enjoy Herodotus. Some of it is fun, like the experiment to figure out the first language, but generally it's pure shit.

Egypt more generally is pure shit in Greek texts. There are other history books that suffer the same fate of an early Egyptian hump in the text that saps the readers strength. See Diodorus Siculus.