Alexander the Great
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A Life in Legend
Richard Stoneman
Out of Print
In his brief life, Alexander the Great gained fame as the military genius who conquered the known world. After death, his legend only increased.
Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.) precipitated immense historical change in the Mediterranean and Near Eastern worlds. But the resonance his legend achieved over the next two millennia stretched even farther—across foreign cultures, religious traditions, and distant nations.
This engaging and handsomely illustrated book for the first time gathers together hundreds of the colorful Alexander legends that have been told and retold around the globe. Richard Stoneman, a foremost expert on the Alexander myths, introduces us first to the historical Alexander and then to the Alexander of legend, an unparalleled mythic icon who came to represent the heroic ideal in cultures from Egypt to Iceland, from Britain to Malaya.
Alexander came to embody the concerns of Hellenistic man; he fueled Roman ideas on tyranny and kingship; he was a talisman for fourth-century pagans and a hero of chivalry in the early Middle Ages. He appears in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic writings, frequently as a prophet of God. Whether battling winged foxes or meeting with the Amazons, descending to the underworld or inventing the world’s first diving bell, Alexander inspired as a hero, even a god. Stoneman traces Alexander’s influence in ancient literature and folklore and in later literatures of east and west. His book provides the definitive account of the legends of Alexander the Great—a powerful leader in life and an even more powerful figure in the history of literature and ideas.
"Alexander the Great enjoyed one of the most spectacularly glorious of human lives. His afterlife, as Richard Stoneman's masterly new survey amply documents, was every bit as spectacular and glory-bringing. Look on his fame, ye mighty, and despair! Or rather, read this literally marvelous book by one of the world's leading authorities on the multifarious Alexander-legend. Hero or villain: there is an Alexander here for every conceivable taste."—Paul Cartledge, Cambridge University
“The legend of Alexander the Great extends from Iceland to China, and is reincarnated in Jewish and Christian versions, in Islam and the religions of India. Richard Stoneman traces the many re-tellings, both in literature and in art, situating each in its historical context. His book is a pleasure to read: full of remarkable episodes and insights, immensely learned, clearly and elegantly narrated. If you want to know how the story of Alexander evolved over two millennia and penetrated most of the world's cultures, this is the book to read.”—David Konstan, Brown University
“In this impressive volume the many varicoloured threads of the legend of Sultan Iskander are skilfully woven into a fascinating fabric. Stoneman has successfully faced an awesome challenge in marshalling a huge body of diverse and complex material into an ordered whole, subtly highlighting the factors which have given Alexander's legend such an enduring and widespread appeal and the ways in which it has been adapted to very different cultures.”—Stephanie West, Oxford University
"Richard Stoneman retells in a fascinating way the life of Alexander the Great not from the historical records but from the fictional texts of the Alexander Romance and other legendary sources. The result is an extremely rich and well-documented survey of the various traditions which, at the same time, is also a most enjoyable reading. This highly recommendable book is a masterpiece and will be the new point of reference for all future studies in this field." - Heinz Hofmann, University of Tuebingen
‘In this fascinating book, Stoneman explores the various legendary aspects of the general. Stoneman suggests that Alexander embodies the aspirations of Everyman.’ — The Independent, 16th April 2010
‘Richard Stoneman gave 20 well-spent years to the writing of this masterly book. In it he separates the truths about Alexander from the many myths that have surrounded him.’ — Sunday Telegraph, 28th March 2010
Publication Date: April 9, 2008
30 b/w + 16 color illus.