Alexander the "Great"

Defining a Legacy 

   1. King Alexander III of Macedonia is widely known for expanding his empire geographically, but Alexander as a man and ruling an empire was not successful because Alexander was a self-serving individual who created animosity within his army of Greeks and Macedonians, his mental stability was questionable, and he was a heavy drinker. When his father, Philip II, was assassinated, Alexander named himself King of Macedonia, but his claim was unstable because his father had a child with his young wife Cleopatra. Some Macedonian noblemen spread rumors questioning Alexander's legitimacy. The youngest son of Philip was a threat to Alexander's claim to the Macedonian throne, so his mother Olympias took action. She dispatched Cleopatra and the baby boy, giving Alexander a clear road to the Macedonian kingship. The Greek city states began to rebel after hearing the news of Philip's death. In response to the revolts, Alexander marched his army south to maintain his hold on Greece. He marched to Thebes, killing six thousand Thebans and selling off the survivors to slavery. Alexander's brutality to Thebes scared other Greek city states into submission. After securing Greece, Alexander turned his attention to Persia, so he marched through the Hellespont Strait into Asia. The Battle of Granicus went as expected because Alexander was the better general and he had more advanced battle formations such as the Macedonian phalanx and a fast moving Calvary. King Darius III of Persia fled with his surviving army, but Alexander didn't follow Darius. Alexander should have seized his chance to eliminate Darius because Darius was in a weakened state, but Alexander gave Darius an opportunity to regroup. Instead of taking this rational course of action, Alexander went to Egypt and conquered it. In 331 B.C.  Alexander fought Darius for a second time at Arbela.  David Sacks, a historian, describes the battle as "A huge clumsy affair that has defied modern analysis" (16) because Alexander suffered heavy losses on his side and Darius escaped Alexander for a second time. Alexander didn't learn from his mistake two years earlier and made the choice of not chasing Darius even though he was vulnerable to attack. Because of Alexander's laziness, a man named Bessus killed Darius first and claimed himself to be the King of Persia. All that Alexander could do was to kill the man who killed his rival. Bessus was hunted down by Alexander and killed; Alexander now was the King of Persia. Even though he accomplished his father's goal, Alexander did not return to Macedonia. Instead, he continued to conquer new lands leaving cities named Alexandria after himself behind him. While traveling through foreign countries, Alexander's mental condition was to be questioned, According to the website entitled "Alexander of Macedonia,"  "He most likely suffered from manic-depressive syndrome, now also known as bipolar syndrome. While in the manic phase Alexander possessed boundless energy and charm. He could be generous to his enemies as well as his friends. But in the depressive phase he could order monstrous atrocities and even personally carryout despicable acts of violence." Feeling overwhelmed by his responsibilities as a commanding officer and a leader, Alexander turned to alcohol to relieve his stress. However, patients with bipolar disorder have more of a chance of becoming addicted because of the unusually high levels of serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine that control appetite, metabolism, sleep, and emotions that are inside of the brain. Alexander's brain was most likely having difficulties processing these chemicals, thus making him more unpredictable and having more depression. In 328 B.C. Alexander's childhood friend Cleitus was murdered by Alexander because he dared to criticize him. In a blind drunken rage Alexander murdered his friend who saved his life at the Battle of Granicus and sulked for three days before moving on.While marching through Bateria and Sogdiana, Alexander married a Bactrian woman named Roxane. The marriage generated tension with his Greek and Macedonian army because the Greeks and Macedonians regarded Bactrians as barbarians, so the resentment between Alexander and his people only grew. On his travels Alexander began to adopt Persian customs, such as proskynesis, worshiping a living person as a god and wore a fusion of Macedonian and Persian clothing. Alexander sent messages home demanding that Greeks and Macedonians worship him as a god. The Greeks were infuriated by Alexander's demand because the Greeks believed in worshiping a god or dead hero, not a living human. Alexander also showed favoritism towards Persians by leaving them in charge of his conquered lands. Wepman says, "He drafted 30,000 Persian boy to learn Greek and to receive Macedonian military training...He called these young men his 'successors'" (93). After years of conquest Alexander finally came home to build his empire, but he died from a fever at the age of 32. Because he died at a young age, Alexander's empire collapsed as quickly as it rose.

  2. Many societies of the ancient world saw Alexander as great based upon their own values, but the prominent Greek city state of Sparta did not see Alexander as great. Sparta was excluded from the Corinthian league created by Philip II. Sparta did not accept Alexander as their leader, so they were excluded from the league again by Alexander. Adding to Sparta's bitterness was Alexander's fusion policy. The fusion policy demanded that Sparta worship him as a god, but Sparta is known for its stubbornness and holding faith in the Greek gods. Sparta was not to worship a human, and even to make matters worse it was a Persian custom. Because Sparta was known for being a belligerent city, Spartans did not accept Alexander because he was not conquering new lands for the glory of Sparta or for Greece, but it was for his own personal interests.

  3. Many people's identities become lost in time and fade into legend like Alexander the Great.The people that knew him personally are dead, so future generations would never have a clear image of the man Alexander, and the Alexander Romance obstructs the path to know Alexander. The Alexander Romance is a fiction novel, which embellished his life by saying that he found a tribe of headless men, turned into a merman, sought the Water of Life, and had eagles carry him, all of which turned him into a hero of myth rather than a man. Another topic that was debated was Alexander's death. His mother Olympias was convinced that her son died from poisoning rather than a fever and killed Iolaus for revenge. Another person whose achievements and very existence have been questioned is Hua Mulan. She is a legendary Chinese folk tale heroine who served in an all male army who were unaware of her true gender. According to Princeton university, Mulan was first introduced in the Ballad of Mulan. The earliest accounts of her said that she was alive in the Wei Dynasty  (358-543), but there are other accounts of her in different time periods as well. Her surname is unknown because it has changed many times from Zhu to Wei and to Hua. Alexander and Hua Mulan are not very different because time and distance has obscured their true identity, and they have melted into legend rather than fact.

Works Cited 

"Alexander of Macedonia." Alexander of Macedonia. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Sept. 2014. <http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/alexandergreat.htm>.

"Bipolar Disorder and Addiction | Dual Diagnosis." Dual Diagnosis. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2014. <http://www.dualdiagnosis.org/bipolar-disorder-and-addiction/>.

"Hua Mulan." Princeton University. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Sept. 2014. <http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Hua_Mulan.html>.

Mercer, Charles E. Alexander the Great. New York: American Heritage Pub.; Book Trade Distribution by Meredith; Institutional Distribution by Harper & Row, 1963. Print.

Moulton, Carroll. Ancient Greece and Rome: An Encyclopedia for Students. New York: Scribner, 1998. Print.

Sacks, David, Oswyn Murray, and Margaret Bunson. Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World. New York: Facts on File, 1995. Print.

Wepman, Dennis. Alexander the Great. New York: Chelsea House, 1986. Print.