That’s why the Bible gets referred to as fiction by non believers- some people believe in all the supernatural events and there are other crazy things in it.
[quote]DoubleDuce wrote:
The sources on Alexander the great are second or third hand and written 600 or more years after the fact
[/quote]
Actually the best source we have on Alexander is Arrian. Arrian wrote his history at the beginning of the second century AD and had access to Alexander Ptolemy’s history and the Macedonian court records. He also had access to the works of Alexander’s admiral Nearchus as well as Eratosthenes, Asclepidiades, Megasthenes - not to mention the king’s own letters and the diary of his secretary Eumenes. Arrian’s Anabasis was named and structured in homage to Xenophon’s Anabasis.
In addition to Arrian’s history we have that of Quintus Curtius writing in the first century AD. And Plutarch’s life of Alexander written in the second century AD and Diodorus Siculus who was a contemporary of Julius Caesar and Augustus(first century BC.) Then there’s Justinian in the third century AD, Strabo’s geography(first century AD) and many stray facts can be picked up from Livy, Dionysius, Josephus, Frontius and Amian.
Then there’s Polybius who used many of the above sources and also Clitarchus, Polycrates, Onesicritus, Antigenes Istrus, Aristoblus, Chares, Hecataeus Eritreus, Philip the Chalcidian, Duris the Samian, Anticlides, Philo the Theban, Philip of Macedon, Hisangelus, Antisthenes, Menechmus the Sicyonian, Nymphis of Heraclea, Potamon the Mitylenean, Sotericus Arsites, Callisthenes, Eratosthenes, Polyclitus, Hermippus and Sotion.
[quote]SexMachine wrote:
[quote]DoubleDuce wrote:
The sources on Alexander the great are second or third hand and written 600 or more years after the fact
[/quote]
Actually the best source we have on Alexander is Arrian. Arrian wrote his history at the beginning of the second century AD and had access to Alexander Ptolemy’s history and the Macedonian court records. He also had access to the works of Alexander’s admiral Nearchus as well as Eratosthenes, Asclepidiades, Megasthenes - not to mention the king’s own letters and the diary of his secretary Eumenes. Arrian’s Anabasis was named and structured in homage to Xenophon’s Anabasis.
In addition to Arrian’s history we have that of Quintus Curtius writing in the first century AD. And Plutarch’s life of Alexander written in the second century AD and Diodorus Siculus who was a contemporary of Julius Caesar and Augustus(first century BC.) Then there’s Justinian in the third century AD, Strabo’s geography(first century AD) and many stray facts can be picked up from Livy, Dionysius, Josephus, Frontius and Amian.
Then there’s Polybius who used many of the above sources and also Clitarchus, Polycrates, Onesicritus, Antigenes Istrus, Aristoblus, Chares, Hecataeus Eritreus, Philip the Chalcidian, Duris the Samian, Anticlides, Philo the Theban, Philip of Macedon, Hisangelus, Antisthenes, Menechmus the Sicyonian, Nymphis of Heraclea, Potamon the Mitylenean, Sotericus Arsites, Callisthenes, Eratosthenes, Polyclitus, Hermippus and Sotion.[/quote]
Okay, I’m sorry, second and third hand sources from 450 years and more after the fact. It’s also ironic to quote multiple sources support the notion that these works are sound when they blatantly contradict one another.
But additionally look for support, you don’t just need different writings, but you need corroboration of the single writing itself. You like to see as many copies as possible. You need to see copies from as close to the date of authorship as possible. And you need all those texts to show as little change from one to the other as possible.
The Alexander the great sources fail on those accounts.
Arrian used the best contemporary sources including Ptolemy’s diary, the king’s letters and the official state Macedonian records. You’d do better to argue that the contemporary sources used were pro-Alexandrian propaganda. But yes, there are certainly many ridiculous sources on Alexander.
Second hand sources are still a lot like playing the game telephone.
I know a guy who says he saw something.