Herodotus And Thucydides Similarities

While comparing the two pieces of literature, The Histories, by Herodotus, and The Peloponnesian War, by Thucydides they had many resemblances but what really caught my eye was the strong differences between them. The two historians, who were seen as the original fathers of Greek Historiography, played a huge role in narrating history. Although there were some similarities, Herodotus’ and Thucydides’ works differ significantly in the amount of detail, writing style, and topics discussed. When reading The Histories, and The Peloponnesian War, it was very easy to notice the difference in amount of detail the two historians included. Herodotus and Thucydides took two very different approaches while narrating and although Herodotus was all over the place at times, I certainly preferred his more. His book included detail from a diverse human experience, including information based on spoken accounts and myths. Not only did he

This allows the reader to experience two different sides to history, with Herodotus being a more animated and sensational writer and Thucydides being more factual and analytical. In The Histories, Herodotus seems to focus on entertaining his audience and dramatizing stories and events to make them seem more stimulating. This is understandable because back then, this was storytelling. Although it leaves the reader unsure to what information is true or false, it definitely created a more thought-provoking read. Thucydides, on the other hand, was the complete opposite. He did not care to be stimulating or amusing, but to be as accurate as possible, providing numerous facts as they happened. Thucydides took a more logical approach and provided the reader a better understanding of what led up to the Peloponnesian War. While reading the two books, it really stood out how different Herodotus’ and Thucydides’ writing styles