The Madness of Cambyses

Posted on 03 June 2018 by Herodotus

Do you see your son, standing over there, in the antechamber Well, I am going to shoot him The story of the great and mad Cambyses, King of Persia, told by part historian, part mythmaker Herodotus of Halicarnassus Introducing Little Black Classics 80 books for Penguin s 80th birthday Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of Penguin Classics, with books from around the world and across many centuries They take us from a balloon ride over Victorian London to a garden of blossom in Japan, from Tierra del Fuego to 16th century California and the Russian steppe Here are stories lyrical and savage poems epic and intimate essays satirical and inspirational and ideas that have shaped the lives of millions Herodotus c.484 425 BCE Herodotus s The Histories is also available in Penguin Classics. New Read The Madness of Cambyses By Herodotus For Kindle ePUB or eBook – kino-fada.fr I love Herodotus Histories I see him as one of the greatest historians of all time, but this translation is so poor I could not find a way to redeem it For a complete work and a better translation look for the Aubrey de S lincourt copy, I gave t...This was such a fun read The book was only about 50 pages long, but at the beginning I had a hard time getting through it with all the names of different people and places After that beginning it was wonderful though I love the stories about the Persian kings and in general stories about the ancient world.Cambyses is a complete nut job who is so self obsessed that he believes people are celebrating his lost battle when the whole of Egypt is celebrating the arrival of a god He also kills almos This was...The Madness of Cambyses is a translation of the Greek work on the Persian king Cambyses II, Son of Cyrus the Great.He was considered a mad king for his almost insane and extreme ways He would kill anyone who crossed his path or some much so said a word against him, which I think became his downfall.The theme of this little classic is quite the same How he ro...This is a weird mixture of historical fact and mythological fiction about Cambyses, a crazy Persian king There s a hell of a lot of death and destruction, and you get the vibe that nobody was safe.If you like your history straightforward and decisive, Herodotus probably won t be your cup of tea If, however, you are fine with a leisurely meander, full of odd digressions and random facts, and if, like me, you are delighted with a storyteller historian who says things like, Now I don t actually think this is true but it s so wonderfully odd that I have to tell you about it you ll probably find Herodotus loads of fun.This Penguin Little Black Classics edition is a selection from Tom Hol If you like your history straightforward and decisive, Herodotus probably won t be your cup of tea If, however, you are fine with a leisurely meander, full of odd digressions and random facts, and if, like me, you are delighted with a storyteller historian who says things like, Now I don t actually think this is true but it s so wonderfully odd that I have to tell you about it you ll probably find Herodotus loads of fun.This Penguin Little Black Classics edition is a selection from Tom Holland s recent translation of Herodotus s The Histories, and features the action...An excerpt or excerpts from Heodotus The Histories, all pertaining to Cambyses, the mad Persian King.It is a readable, but slightly awkward collection Many Greek and Persian names, and many Greek people and peoples make for a somewhat confusing narrative.As is typical with the words of oracles, things seldom work out the way they are expected to, and the making of plans to avoid outcomes after the advice of an oracle, often what leads to words of the oracle coming to pass.Clearly mad, and seld An excerpt or excerpts from Heodotus The Histories, all pertaining to Cambyses, the mad Persian King.It is a readable, but slightly awkward collection Many Greek and Persi...In comparison to some of the other Little Black Classics disasters I ve encountered, I fairly enjoyed this one.The mad king of Persia and his manic actions make for an interesting read, particularly the steps he takes in response to dreams, or the comments of oracles What s meaningful here is the moment Cambyses discovers he s dying, and goes on to realise he was completely misguided in one of his deranged acts There was something really poignant in this for me.Accounts of historic custom were In comparison to some of the other Little Black Classics disasters I ve encountered, I fairly enjoyed this one.The mad king of Persia and his manic actions make for an interesting read, particularly the steps he takes in response to dreams, or the comments of oracles What s meaningful here is the moment Cambyses discovers he s dying, and goes on to realise he was completely misguided in one of his deranged acts T...This is how to do a good translation in this modern age, unlike O Cruel Alexis see review.Here we have the use of varied modern words to give meaning and context, no slang or the tranlators own re wording of the text to suit himself.This is how it s done classic stories told in a neat and...This is a very well written or translated, if you prefer account of, indeed, the madness of Cambyses, an ancient Persian king who conquered Egypt In tone it is similar to the Little Black Classic number 17, about the deranged Roman Emperor Caligula, wherein they are both as sane as a box of frogs However, Arabic and Egypt history does not interest me all that much and I found there was a little too much in...Vol 78 of my Penguin Little Black Classics Box Set that I ve read previously ForHerodotus Histories, go here.

03 June 2018

Herodotus