THE GREAT MAN THEORY

Themes

• Dominance
• Models in Southwest Asia, Mediterranean, and South Asia

The Great Man Theory

• the man makes the times or the times make the man?
• George Hegel; Thomas Carlyle (1840):
• Why do we want heroes?

Two Models from Southwest Asia

• Assyrian Empire: __________ war?
  • Environment *: Mesopotamia, Ninevah
  • Development
    • c. 1100-612 B.C.E.; high point 9th-7th centuries
    • Sargon II 721-705 B.C.E.
    • Sennacherib 705-681 B.C.E.
    • Ashurbanipal 668-663 B.C.E.
    • defeat by Babylonians and Medes 612 B.C.E.
  • Culture
    • political:
    • mentality:
    • Ashur
    • total war
    • Assyrian bull figure [Assyrian Gallery; Alt Assyrian bull figure]
    • *Ashurbanipal *
• Achaemenids: __________ imperialism?
  • Environment
  • Development
    • Indo-Europeans c. 2000-1000 B.C.E.
    • Achaemenid dynasty 558-330 B.C.E.
      • Cyrus the Great 558-530 B.C.E.
      • Cambyses 530-522 B.C.E.
      • Darius 522-486 B.C.E.
      • Xerxes 486-464 B.C.E.
  • Culture
    • control without __________:
    • "King of Kings:"
    • Persepolis [Alt Persepolis]; Persepolis cover; *

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  Great Men and Fleeting Empires

  • Alexander and the Hellenistic Empire
    • Who gets the credit?
    • the conditions:
      • Philip II 359-336 B.C.E.
      • Alexander the Great 336-323 B.C.E.
      • Hellenistic empires 323-272 B.C.E.
        • Ptolemaic
        • Selucid
        • Antigonid
    • the mythical man:
      • Plutarch (1st cen C.E.)
      • Aristotle
      • *
    • cultural legacy: Hellenistic world
      • cosmopolitan
      • [Alexandria]
      • the submerged Alexandria (Frank Goddio)
  • Ashoka and the Mauryan Empire; Chandragupta and the Gupta Empire
    • Man or Myth?
    • the conditions
      • Republics and Kingdoms c.600-321 B.C.E.
      • 5th cen B.C.E: Magadha, Kashi, Kosala, Vrijis
      • Nandas c. 360 B.C.E.
      • Mauryan dynasty 321-180 B.C.E.
        • Chandragupta Maurya 321 B.C.E.
        • Bindusara 297-272 B.C.E.
        • Ashoka 272-232 B.C.E.
      • Diffusion and disintegration c. 180-B.C.E.-C.E. 300
        • Kushan Empire in the north (Kanishka, C.E. 120)
        • Satvahana Dynasty in the south
      • Gupta dynasty 320-550 C.E.
        • Chandragupta 320-335: empire?
        • Chandragupta II 375-415: golden age?
      • the myth of Ashoka:
        • Ashokavandana
        • Sanchi stupa [Alt Sanchi stupa]
      • cultural legacy:
        • lions*
        • Pataliputra
        • dharma
        • edicts

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    Conclusions

    • threads: interactive map
    • dominant or domineering?
    • historical impact and the power of heroic myth

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    Explore!

    • Global Consortium: Middle East & Inner Asia Part 3
    • World Cultures: The Assyrians
    • World Cultures: The Persians
    • Alexander the Great's homepage
    • World Cultures: History of India
    • Itihaas: Ancient India
    • Political and Social Ethics of India
    Return to Lecture Outline
    kjolly@hawaii.edu 8/23/01