Thucydides the Historian

Thucydides

In this course, Professor Neville Morley (University of Bristol) explores Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, focusing on the key episodes in the text and thinking in particular about some of the historiographical issues that modern historians face when reading Thucydides. As we move through the course, we think about the opening paragraphs of Thucydides’ history and his methodology as a historian, his views on historical causation, his dramatisation of history, and his sense of the tragedy of history, among many other issues.

Thucydides the Historian

In this module, we explore the opening sections of Thucydides’ history in which he outlines his historical method, and consider why it is that Thucydides has developed the reputation for being the Father of History among modern historians.