MIDTE/RM QUES/TIONS

Questions for the midterm 

Thucydides's History of the Peloponnesian War

Thucydides's  Melian Dialogue has often been considered a key text of realism. Do you think this is an adequate characterization? Why or why not? Justify your answer with allusions to the text.

Also, describe the Mytilenian debate. What were the positions of respective positions of Cleon and Diodotus? Was Diodotus right to frame the argument as he did? Why or why not? What do you make of Cleon's claims about empire?

Lastly, what did Thucydides think was the reason for war between Athens and Sparta? What lessons can we draw from the (whole) History of the Peloponnesian War about power and morality?