Speech of Alexander the Great

1. Speech of Alexander the Great 326 B.C. Hydasphes River, India Miles Farlow

2. The speech has been translated from Ancient Greek by modern historians.

3. Speaker: Alexander III of Macedon • Macedonian King at the age of 20. • Military genius and leader of an enormous army. • Conqueror of a large portion of the Eurasian Continent. • Studied under Aristotle.

4. Occasion • After ten years of conquest, the Macedonian army came upon India, one of the few remaining empires left to conquer. • Alexander the Great had heard that his men did not wish to fight another battle. They had been away from their families and homes for too long, and wanted to turn back towards Greece. He felt that they needed some motivation.

5. Audience • Alexander the Great gave his speech to his gathered army after a ten year conquest of the continent. They were tired, battle-worn, and missed their families.

6. Purpose • Alexander The Great intended to lead his army into India to continue his conquering of the continent. • They had been fighting for 10 years, and his men wanted to return home. • He wanted to persuade them to continue fighting.

7. Subject • The subject of the speech is the benefit of perseverance. Alexander the Great paints a picture of riches and prosperity for his men telling them it could all be theirs if they fought with him for just awhile longer.

8. Tone • Alexander The Great’s Speech has a tone of triumph and excitement. Many of his statements in the speech are designed to motivate and empower his men. Much of his speech involves the recitation of lands conquered in their conquest.

9. Ethos, Pathos, and Logos • Ethos: Alexander assumes automatic Ethos by being the King of Macedonia, as well as ruler of all the lands he has conquered in the past ten years. • Pathos: He uses statements like “why do you hesitate to extend the power of Macedon—your power!” and poses questions like “Are you afraid that a few natives who may still be left will offer opposition?” to play on the emotions and pride of his men and give them the idea that the wealth is as much theirs as it is his own. • Logos: Alexander appeals to the logic of his men by highlighting that the enemy in India, if not subdued, could easily take land that they have just spent the last ten years of their lives conquering, which would have made the whole trip pointless. Logically, the men want to have gained something from the ordeal.

10. If you want to read the speech… • Unfortunately there are no recordings of the speech to be found on the internet. It can be read at this web address: • http://www.artofmanliness.com/speech-of-alexander-the-great/

11. Bibliography • http://www.artofmanliness.com/2008/08/01/the-35-greatest-speeches-in-history/ • www.worldtrek.org • www.paulchong.net • www.historyofmacedonia.org