Alexander the Great in Current Scholarship

Bibliographic Data

ID12731908
AuthorsEdward M Anson (University of Arkansas at Little Rock, corresponding author)
Year2009
Volume7
Issue3
Pages981-992
Publication date2009-04-09
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueHistory Compass (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1478-0542 • E-ISSN: 1478-0542
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/j.1478-0542.2009.00606.x
OpenAlexW2106497060
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited32

Interest in Alexander the Great has never flagged from the time of his death until the present day. The bibliography of Alexander the Great continues to grow at near exponential rates. He was a commander of outstanding ability whose legacy was a world forever changed. However, plagued by a dearth of contemporary sources, scholars still debate his goals, his methods, and his true legacy. Did he envision and work towards a world where the races would be fused into one? Or was he an insatiable conqueror whose values were those of a Genghis Khan or a Tamarlane? Was his empire built on expediency or was it an attempt at a new world order under an absolute monarch. Finally, did Alexander order his own deification, and was this the result of practical administrative and political calculations, or was it the consequence of growing megalomaniacy. All of these interpretations have modern scholarly adherents, although some have come to dominate most current scholarship

Ancient history · Empire · Environmental ethics · Order (exchange · Political science · Politics · Scholarship · Social science · Sociology · World order · Byzantine Studies and History · Classical Antiquity Studies · Classics · Eurasian Exchange Networks · History · Law · Philosophy