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Alexander the Great: Journey to the End of the Earth Audiobook
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(3.00) - 11 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Alexander's behavior was conditioned along certain lines—heroism, courage, strength, superstition, bisexuality, intoxication, cruelty. He bestrode Europe and Asia like a supernatural figure.
In this succinct portrait of Alexander the Great, distinguished scholar and historian Norman Cantor draws on the major writings of Alexander's contemporaries as well as the most recent psychological and cultural studies to illuminate this most legendary of men—a great figure in the ancient world whose puzzling personality greatly fueled his military accomplishments. Cantor describes Alexander's ambiguous relationship with his father, Philip II of Macedon; his oedipal involvement with his mother, the Albanian princess Olympias; and his bisexuality. He traces Alexander's attempts to bridge the East and West, the Greek and Persian worlds, using Achilles, hero of the Trojan War, as his model. Finally, Cantor explores Alexander's view of himself in relation to the pagan gods of Greece and Egypt.
More than a biography, Cantor's Alexander the Great is a psychological rendering of a man of his time.
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"The author does a good job of illustrating Alexander's personality,and the culture and times he lived in. He provides great insights to Greek culture, and how modern societies are still influenced by Alexander's actions."
— Jon (4 out of 5 stars)
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“[An] incomparable mix of insight and cogency…Military exploits (in Alexander’s case, of course, military talents) are excitingly revivified, and honesty is the hallmark of Cantor’s appreciation of Alexander’s relationship with his longtime male lover, Hephaestion. A book that does the biographical art proud.”
— Booklist (starred review)
Alexander the Great Listener Reviews
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" not a bad book, but did not learn anything new. "
— Peter, 2/18/2013 -
" Although I enjoyed this book, it was nothing more than a survey of previous works. There was no new scholarship presented. "
— Mark, 12/1/2012 -
" Not as easy a read as "Antiquity" but still worthwhile use of my time. "
— Luci, 8/28/2012 -
" I wanted a biography on this notorious ruler of ancient macedonia. Cantor did not need to write 1000 pages to give you a good udnerstanding of this complicated man. "
— Dave, 12/20/2011 -
" Disappointing. Other Cantor books are very good; this one is thin physically and mentally. "
— Alan, 11/22/2011 -
" this book was so cynical that it read like a hit piece. still, it had some good intel. "
— RK, 4/7/2011 -
" This is a great book for someone who isn't familiar with Alexander the Great. It is an easy read and you will also pick up some small bits of history about the spartans. "
— John, 3/9/2011 -
" this book was so cynical that it read like a hit piece. still, it had some good intel. "
— RK, 2/24/2011 -
" This is a great book for someone who isn't familiar with Alexander the Great. It is an easy read and you will also pick up some small bits of history about the spartans. "
— John, 9/4/2009 -
" Disappointing. Other Cantor books are very good; this one is thin physically and mentally. "
— Alan, 1/15/2008
About Norman F. Cantor
Norman F. Cantor (1929–2004) was emeritus professor of history, sociology, and comparative literature at New York University. His academic honors included appointments as a Rhodes Scholar, Porter Ogden Jacobus Fellow at Princeton University, and Fulbright professor at Tel Aviv University. His earlier books include Inventing the Middle Ages, nominated for a National Book Critics Circle Award, and The Civilization of the Middle Ages, one of the most widely read narratives of the Middle Ages in the English language.
About Bronson Pinchot
Bronson Pinchot, Audible’s Narrator of the Year for 2010, has won Publishers Weekly Listen-Up Awards, AudioFile Earphones Awards, Audible’s Book of the Year Award, and Audie Awards for several audiobooks, including Matterhorn, Wise Blood, Occupied City, and The Learners. A magna cum laude graduate of Yale, he is an Emmy- and People’s Choice-nominated veteran of movies, television, and Broadway and West End shows. His performance of Malvolio in Twelfth Night was named the highlight of the entire two-year Kennedy Center Shakespeare Festival by the Washington Post. He attended the acting programs at Shakespeare & Company and Circle-in-the-Square, logged in well over 200 episodes of television, starred or costarred in a bouquet of films, plays, musicals, and Shakespeare on Broadway and in London, and developed a passion for Greek revival architecture.