An Unofficial 'The Rest Is History' Reading List

6. Troy

November 23, 2020

Description

It’s been described as the most legendary story ever told. But did the Trojan War actually happen? And was it really fought over a beautiful woman? Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook discuss an...
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Books Referenced

Troy

Author: Stephen Fry

Context:

Mentioned as the 'peg' for the episode - 'the all-conquering Leviathan that is Stephen Fry has a new book out on Troy, which tells you everything you need to know about the fascination with it.'

The Iliad

Author: Homer

Context:

Discussed extensively as Homer's account of the Trojan War. Dominic mentions reading a children's version to his son as bedtime reading. The hosts discuss how the Iliad doesn't contain many famous elements like the Trojan horse.

The Odyssey

Author: Homer

Context:

Referenced as 'the sequel' to the Iliad, specifically mentioning the scene where 'we meet the ghost of Achilles in the underworld' who regrets choosing a short glorious life.

The Histories

Author: Herodotus

Context:

Discussed as the first work of history ever written, which 'begins with an account of different people raping each other's women' and rationalizes Helen's abduction.

History of the Peloponnesian War

Author: Thucydides

Context:

Referenced when discussing Thucydides as 'the next great historian who follows after Herodotus' who provided a rationalist perspective on the Trojan War, believing it was about wealth and trade routes rather than Helen.

Trojan Women

Author: Euripides

Context:

Described as 'one of the bleakest works of literature ever written,' portraying 'the queens and the princesses of Troy being rounded up after the sack of the city, about to be led off into slavery.'