Herodotus Rhetorical Analysis

A snapshot of the format and layout of the schematic diagram that guides the reader through the causes of the Ionian revolt. In the image, displayed are the ingrained causes in relation to economic burdens, military as well as political causes that had all played a part in applying substantial hardship on the Ionian people. Conversely, the uprising against the Persians came about more from opportunity then military planning, because of the unsuccessful invasion by the Persians upon Naxos. There exists a discord between the reports of Herodotus and todays modern historians in regards to the immediate catalyst responsible for this war, were the former states that it was Aristagoras who planned the invasion, whilst the latter disagree with this conception by placing more emphasis …show more content…
Following these events, Ionians call for military aid from the Greek mainland and Herodotus reports that the dispatching of the ships from Athens was the “beginning of trouble for both Greeks and the Barbarians”. The use of Herodotus’s book Histories on the Greco Persians Wars, even though they are questionable, affords students the opportunity to disseminate and analyse these works and highlight the perspectives adopted by Herodotus and his unavoidable leanings towards the Greeks. Students should approach Herodotus’s accounts with caution by acknowledging the rhetoric used by Herodotus to describe the Persians as “barbarians” that reflected the emotiveness and subjectiveness of the author. Additionally, students should be weary of the exaggerations and innuendos used by Herodotus, for example the over exaggeration of the numbers of vessels in the battles. However, Herodotus questionable account derives from his interpretation of history as a combination of Logos and Mythos. Therefore, the analysis and interpretation of these sources embedded within the schematic diagram allow students to fulfil the syllabus outcomes of assessing relevant information from a variety of sources (BOSTES,