From Tyrant to Philosopher-King: A Literary History of Alexander the Great in Medieval and Early Modern England
From Tyrant to Philosopher-King: A Literary History of Alexander the Great in Medieval and Early Modern England (Cursor Mundi) by Charles Russell Stone
English | October 1, 2013 | ISBN: 2503545394 | PDF | 247 pages | 1.6 MB
English | October 1, 2013 | ISBN: 2503545394 | PDF | 247 pages | 1.6 MB
Since his death in Babylon in 323 BC, Alexander the Great has inspired an unparalleled legacy founded on both histories and legends. From ancient Alexandria to twentieth-century America, and from politics to popular entertainment, he has remained a source of fascination and debate. Today our conception of Alexander rests upon two Roman inventions of history.
The first, that of a bloodthirsty tyrant corrupted by Persian decadence, was recovered in medieval monasteries and thrived for centuries, until the second, which viewed Alexander as an enlightened ruler and the head of a harmonious global empire, flourished in the age of humanism. From this clash of intellectual movements arose our modern debates over Alexander as either a madman or a philosopher-king, the epitome of corruption or of ideal government. This book explores the investigation of Latin and Greek histories of Alexander in twelfth- to seventeenth-century England and the radical evolution of a man still abhorred and imitated today.