Cambridge Companions to Literature

Herodotus'' Histories is the first major surviving prose work from antiquity. Its range of interests is immense, covering the whole of the known world and much beyond, and it culminates in a detailed account of the Persian Wars of the early fifth century BC. Moreover, research has shown that Herodotus is a sophisticated and at times even ironic narrator, and a pioneer and serious practitioner of historical research at a time when the Greeks'' traditions about their past were still the fluid transmissions and memories of a largely oral society. This Companion provides a series of accessible chapters, written by distinguished scholars, illuminating many aspects of Herodotus'' work: his skill in language and his narrative art; his intellectual preconceptions; his working methods and techniques; his attitude towards nature and the gods; his attitude towards foreign cultures and peoples; and his view of human life and human history.