Jed's Alexander Post

1. Does Alexander the Great deserve his name and why or why not?
2. Has the world of public opinion always agreed with you?

Alexander was a salient figure during the Hellenistic time period that spread his country’s culture across many nations. He successfully accomplished what no other man could in a relatively short amount of time. With an empire ranging from the far western Egypt to India and Southeast Asia, he was well known for unifying much of the continent.  While some aspects of his life could be interpreted as exorbitant and excessive, overall he was an influential character that deserved the title of Alexander the Great. He was great as a result of vigorous bravery and fighting spirit as well as an innate sense of war strategies which guided him to conquer an unprecedented amount of land. The world of public opinion will occasionally agree or disagree with my moral compass and what I believe is justified in modern society.

The son of Philip II was always an ebullient fighter, even from a young age. Ever since his birth in 356 BC, Alexander would achieve impressive feats such as taming a ravenous wild horse that no grown man could subdue. This was at the age of twelve, about the time when children in today’s era would be completing the sixth grade. His father would teach him hunting skills and take him into the woods regularly to show him the benefit of independence and survival knowledge. Alexander continually embraced adversity without fear and regarded it as an opportunity to improve. He naturally rose through the ranks of the military and became respected by the country, as this quote exemplifies: “Alexander put down a revolt and proved himself a wise and courageous leader.” (Watts, The Hellenistic Age).  After he became a top general of the Macedonian army and led beside Philip, he backed an invasion of Greece and in a show of prowess and force, he brutally defeated the Grecian elite fighting force known as the Theban Secret Band in the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC. Five years later, he was faced with a massive force with King Darius II from Persia with over thirty thousand combatants. Using the phalanx formation and preeminent courage and bravery, Alexander emerged victorious in the Battle of Issus with a much smaller force. The combination of all of these events substantiates his strong resolve to always overcome even the most enduring threats to his country.

Alexander also attained his prominent stature due to the more technical aspect of his war victories. He had a good natural sense of which tactics were effective and which ones would end in a blunder, and what he did not pick up on his own Philip would teach him about. In 340 BC, when he was sixteen and Philip had left with the main army to invade Thrace, Alexander was faced with an invasion threat of his own by another Thracian tribe. He quickly gathered together the remaining forces and defeated them. At this point, people started to fully recognize him as a force to be reckoned with, and this was when Philip appointed him as a general.

Any given opinion of the general population of our country or world will not agree with me more often than it will, because I enjoy thinking differently from the masses and forming my own thoughts. In this case of Alexander the Great's genuine greatness, I believe that he was the man that many believe him to be. Despite his flaws which were very human and understandable, Alexander  was an incredible historical figure. Especially considering his numerous military achievements, he was an amazing image that other early world leaders strived to emulate in their military endeavors. For example, he conquered Persia and many surrounding territories. As he said himself when he was meeting with a well-known philosopher of the time, "If I were not Alexander, I should wish to be Diogenes." (Alexander the Great, ABC-CLIO). This showed his more humble character and his respect for people who flourish in other areas such as mathematics or writing.

Alexander of Macedonia was great due to his prowess in military strategy and tactics as well as his fighting spirit which enabled him to have utterly endless energy in his conquest to triumph upon the entire eastern world. In this case, I agree with the majority that Alexander the Great truly deserved his title, although I am not ignorant and did observe that he was an alcoholic, had a burning desire to kill and draw blood and a disproportionate interest in self-promotion and pride. However with all things considered, he did what no other man could achieve by revolutionizing the ancient world and changing culture across Europe. “Alexander III the Great, the King of Macedonia and conqueror of the Persian Empire is considered one of the greatest military geniuses of all times.” (History of Macedonia).

Works Cited

"Alexander of Macedon Biography." Historyofmacedonia.org, www.historyofmacedonia.org/AncientMacedonia/AlexandertheGreat.htm. Accessed 29 Sept. 2016.

"Alexander the Great." Livius, Livius.org, 30 July 2000, www.livius.org/articles/person/alexander-the-great/. Accessed 29 Sept. 2016.

Cartledge, Paul. "Alexander the Great: Hunting for a New Past." BBC News, 17 Feb. 2011, www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/greeks/alexander_the_great_01.shtml#top. Accessed 29 Sept. 2016.

"Hellenistic Period." The Ancient Greek World, Penn Museum, www.penn.museum/sites/greek_world/index.html. Accessed 29 Sept. 2016.

Watts, Tim J. "The Hellenistic Age." ABC-CLIO, ABC-CLIO Solutions, ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/Topics/Display/15?webSiteCode=SLN_HANC&returnToPage=%2fTopics%2fDisplay%2f15&token=79C7587B5C0F499CD6D41BBF12F1E593&casError=Fals. Accessed 29 Sept. 2016.