WorksheetsSources of Alexander
Total questions: 20
Worksheet time: 10mins
What is NOT an issues associated with the literary sources of Alexander?
Contemporary sources are prone to exaggeration and embellishment
Secondary sources are more expansive than contemporary works
Contemporary sources are fragmentary and not citied in later works
3 centuries between his death and connected narrative of reign
Who was the official court historian of Alexander?
Nearchus
Aristobulus
Callisthenes
Cleitarchus
Who is the main source for the vulgate tradition?
Cleitarchus
Ptolemy
Plutarch
Aristobulus
What is the title of Callisthenes work?
Parallel Lives
Anabasis
How Alexander was Educated
Deeds of Alexander
What is Polybius' criticism of Callisthenes?
exaggerating Persian numbers at the Battle of Gaugamela
he was not writing during the time
eulogistic (praising/honouring) bias
he is not a historian but write biography
Who inflates their role at the Battle of Issus?
Onesicritus
Aristobulus
Nearchus
Ptolemy I Soter
Who was exiled from Macedon after the Pixodarus affair?
Ptolemy I Soter
Nearchus
Cleitarchus
Diodorus Siculus
Which sources does Arrian use to write his Anabasis?
Nearchus
Ptolemy
Aristobulus
Cleitarchus
Which sources does Plutarch uses in his Life of Alexander
Ptolemy
Aristobulus
Curtius Rufus
Cleitarchus
Which secondary source does not use Cleitarchus?
Arrian
Plutarch
Diodorus
Trogus
What is NOT one of the criticisms of Diodorus Siculus?
Focuses on sensational and favourite themes
Spends unproportional amounts of time on certain topics
Provides a connected narrative of Alexander's reign
Does not offer own interpretation but a collection of summaries
Who does Justin provide a paraphrased account of?
Nearchus
Aristobulus
Pompeius Trogus
Cleitarchus
What do Heckel and Yardley state about the value Justin?
useful for understanding the tradition when comparing to other works
useful for identifying Cleitarchus' original work
highly accurate and faultless source
he has no value and should not be studied
What is NOT one of the key characteristics of Alexander that is foregrounded in Plutarch ?
Promising youth and ambition
Generous and brave king
Motivated by vengeance rather than greed.
Highlights the Greatness of Alexander, by referring to him as such
What is NOT one aspect of Plutarch's methodology?
Utilises a range and variety of sources
Clear recollection of events of life of Alexander
Comparative works which parallel Roman and Greek
Education and aim to achieve self-improvement, by learning from past
Which two writers uses Xenophon as a model?
Arrian and Callisthenes
Plutarch and Arrian
Plutarch and Onesicritus
Arrian and Onesicritus
Which modern historian stated this about Arrian; "the most complete and the most sober account of Alexander’s reign"?
A. B Bosworth
Heckel and Yardley
N.G.L Hammond
Pierre Briant
What was Arrian's methodology when deciding between account of Ptolemy and Aristobulus?
He used only the sections which agreed with his own interpretation of Alexander
Accepted both histories as completely factual
When in agreement - accepted as truth: When in disagreement - his own judgement on which is more reliable and worth narrating
He cross referenced both accounts against all other ancient writers to determine accuracy
What justification does Arrian provide for the reliability of Aristobulus and Ptolemy's work?
Aristobulus accompanied Alexander on campaign; Ptolemy was a king
Aristobulus used offical historian Callisthenes as a source; Ptolemy went on campagin with Alexander
Both Aristobulus and Ptolemy wrote during Alexander's life
He does not state why he thinks both sources are reliable
What is one criticism of Quintus Curtius Rufus' work?
Only used Cleitarchus as a source
Deeply infused with rhetoric and highly subjective
He wrote during Alexander's life and therefore profited from presenting him favourably
He is the only full length account of Alexander in Latin
