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Pericles' policy
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- 2.55-58
- let the Peloponnesians ravage the countryside, and
avoid confrontation with Spartan infantry; attack Spartan
territory from the sea;
- avoid trying to add to the empire during the
war
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Logic of the policy
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- The Peloponnesian infantry far outnumbered the
Athenian
- Athens couldn't put her whole force ito a series
of land battles because she had to keep her far-flung
empire (see map!) in hand
- in a war of attrition, because neither side could
strike a decisive blow at the other, the policy took
advantage of Athens resources and posed the least
risk
- Do you think Thucydides' believes that, over time,
Pericles' strategy would have worked? Why?
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How popular was Pericles' policy?
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Pericles' speech in 2.60-64: What is he trying to
accomplish?
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What is his strategy for doing so?
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- 60 relation between individual and state
- 60-61 his own leadership
- intellect
- persuasive speech
- patriotism
- incorruptibility
- 61-64 the glories (and tyranny) of the tempire
- 64 hostility to the empire
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2.65: Thucydides on Pericles
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- You will want to think about this carefully and
reflect on it in your paper.
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Compare
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Thucydides assessment of Pericles' leadership with
that of his successors'.
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Real Causes
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What was the real reason, as Thucydides has it, that
Athens lost the Peloponnesian War?
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