Philosophy and the City

Phil and City Contents

Course Materials

sample syllabi

exercises and resources

new/additional readings

walking tours

City as Theater Project

Public Philosophy

Public Phil Resources

PPN Report

 
 

As I note in the introduction to this reading, the only account that we have of Pericles' funeral oration comes to us from Thucydides' History of the Peloponnesian War.  The full text of that history is available on line (translated by Richard Crawley) at the MIT Internet Classics Library (a great source for other classic texts). 

One section of Thucydides' history that is particularly relevant to our understanding of his views on Athenian democracy and its demise is his historical account of the
Mitylenian debate.  Like Pericles' funeral oration, this text is a history, but is likely Thucydides' account, shaded by his own interpretation of events, rather than a word for word account of the actual speech made. 

Here is an
"illustrated" guide to  Pericles' funeral oration that provides photos and historical background information helpful to understanding Pericles' speech.  The guide was developed by Dr. Janice Siegel.



See also Dr. Siegel's website on Pericles' funeral oration and Philadelphia, in which she is constructing an argument for parallels between the values espoused by Pericles and those visible in contemporary Philadelphia.


Here is a website that provides links to a wide range of resources on Pericles, although the site is not well-maintained and some of the links are dead.




 


                                       
copyright 2007-2021 Sharon M. Meagher, Ph.D.
Every effort is made to keep all links and resources up-to-date. Please send corrections or suggestions to me.  Thank you.

Course Materials: Pericles