Regular marked price: $19.95Discount Price: $17.95
Cost Savings: $2.00 (10%)Price fluctuation possible.
How soon does it ship: Normal ship time within one day
Shipping? Absolutely FREE if you qualify for Super Saver Shipping.
Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 883.01
EAN num: 9780801487507
ISBN number: 0801487501
Label: Cornell University Press
Manufacturer: Cornell University Press
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 304
Printing Date: 2001-08
Publishing house: Cornell University Press
Sale Popularity Level: 144132
Studio: Cornell University Press
Other books you might be interested in perusing:
Editor's Notes and Comments:
Product Description:
Xenophon's masterpiece The Education of Cyrus--a work admired by Machiavelli for its lessons on leadership--is at last available in a new English translation for a new century. Also known as the Cyropaedia, this philosophical novel is loosely based on the accomplishments of Cyrus the Great, founder of the vast Persian Empire that later became the archrival of the Greeks in the classical age. It offers an extraordinary portrait of political ambition, talent, and their ultimate limits.
The writings of Xenophon are increasingly recognized as important works of political philosophy. In The Education of Cyrus, Xenophon confronts the vexing problem of political instability by exploring the character and behavior of the ruler. Impressive though his successes are, however, Cyrus is also examined in the larger human context, in which love, honor, greed, revenge, folly, piety, and the search for wisdom all have important parts to play.
Wayne Ambler's prose captures the charm and drama of the work while also achieving great accuracy. His introduction, annotations, and glossary help the reader to appreciate both the engaging story itself and the volume's contributions to philosophy.
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers -
This book was indepth research of King of kings Cyrus the Great with respect how did He became the King of Persia/Iran.
Interestingly, Cyrus the Great became the King of Iran not by having large army but by hard work, and relying on His good allies and friends to establish His empire.
If English is your second language or if you are very first time reader of Cyrus the Great you may wish to read this book "Xenophon's Cyrus The Great" by Larry HEDRICK in order to grasp King of kings Cyrus the Great very well.
Ahura Mazda be with you.
Rated by buyers -
This truly is one of the most remarkable books I've ever read and I would encourage anyone with an interest in military science, government or leadership to take the time to read it. This book requires commitment and a quiet place to read and savor its thought-provoking passages. The investment of time and effort is dwarfed by the magnitude of the lessons this book has to offer. Make the commitment and you'll see why this book was a favorite of men like Alexander the Great, Scipio Africanus, Caesar and Machiavelli.
Rated by buyers 
-
This book is not in the style of a Platonic dialogue, or a play (whether a tragedy or comedy), a Homeric epic (but if you're careful, you'll note parallels), or a history (like Herodotus).
No, Xenophon - a contemporary of Plato's, a student of Socrates - was considered a philosopher way back when. He tells a story and you might think it is a history that is meant to be accurate. There is nothing accurate about Xenophon's use of history in this book; however, the story is well-told and funny, and the prose moves fast in this edition. (Which was your primary concern, of course: that this was a good read.)
He does teach philosophy - ancient philosophy concerned with ethics and politics - in an interesting way. The plot of the book is as follows: Cyrus of Persia receives an education unlike any of his peers. With that education, and a considerable bit of ruthlessness, he attempts to take over the world.
It's difficult to write a story where different philosophical viewpoints define characters and events. Somehow, Xenophon pulls this off, and manages to entertain his reader with tales of battles, lots of humorous exchanges between characters, and even some love stories strewn throughout.
(If you do Classics, you probably want to get acquainted with Xenophon, fast.)
Rated by buyers -
Herodotus' Histories is often considered the gold standard of knowledge pertaining to the Persian empire. Little is made of the fact that this Ionian had certain political grudges against his political masters and had never visited Persia or had entry into Persian society. Xenophone however was a nobleman who lived amongst the Persians and the Medes and was acquaianted with their ways and histories. Xenophone's observations on Persian society and religion are far closer to modern scholarship than Herodotus. Furthermore even the chronological inaccuracies of Cyropaedia are in the Persian tradition. As evidenced by Sassanian histories, the Persians had the habit of attributing the conquests of dynasties to their founders. However the most fascinating and thrilling aspect of reading this book is that the educational stories attributed to Cyrus are identical to the stories found in Adab or the Persian courtly literature of Islamic era. Given that Xenophone was not translated into Persian or Arabic, this confirms the authenticity of the materials used by Xenophone. I love this book and have read it twice already. I recommend it to anyone who wants to have a closer look at the realities of Persia.
Rated by buyers -
Xenophobia is the fear of foreigners. Yet Xenophon's greatest book was a biography of the most hated foe of the greeks, Cyrus.
Cyrus was the greatest emperor of the Persian empire, and the antecedent (see what a great scholar I am? I can't remember all the exact facts like a real student should; I read this stuff for fun) of the Persian emperor who Alexander defeated right before Alexander went crazy and decided to conquer the rest of the world while he was on a streak.
In today's Jingoistic anti-Iran & Iraq climate, it's illuminating to get the Persian perspective on world history, and since I haven't found any Persian histories written from the ancient Persian viewpoint, this book is the best I've read.
Find other books like this one:
