The Anabasis of Cyrus/Xenophon (review)

Xenophon’s Anabasis is now officially larger than any one audience. Due to its merits as an engrossing tale and to academia’s renewed appreciation of Xenophon generally, Wayne Ambler’s contribution makes the fifth translation of the Anabasis now in print. The previous four have been roughly or specifically targeted at the non-specialist interested in ancient history. What makes Ambler’s translation particularly welcome is its purpose – to offer an annotated translation useful for students of politics and political philosophy. Ambler gives us the closest approximation yet of the Anabasis’s rhetorical style and its richness of language. There is also a useful glossary of important or obscure terms and phrases, maps, and brief historical and geographical summaries.

The Anabasis is Xenophon’s account of the experiences of the ‘Ten Thousand’, a Greek mercenary contingent in which he served (ca. 401–399 BCE) and rose to authority. It tells of their campaign in the employ of Cyrus the Younger, a Persian pretender attempting to depose his royal brother, their long retreat through hostile territory following Cyrus’s defeat and death, and lastly their stint in the service of a double-dealing Thracian monarch. Eric Buzzetti observes in his introduction, “….the Anabasis is intended less as a work of history… than as an account of how a follower of Socrates takes up the task of ruling human beings.” Not all scholars would agree with this proposition. Even so, it is a valuable, thought-provoking way to understand Xenophon’s negotiation of the factionalism, ambition, jealousy, and suspicion that constantly beset his efforts to lead the Ten Thousand to safety.

Xenophon wrote four works around the figure of Socrates, and others on politicalphilosophical, cultural, and economic topics. Ambler has already published a highly regarded translation of one of these, The Education of Cyrus, Xenophon’s study of the principles of kingship as practiced, ostensibly, by Cyrus the Great, founder of the Persian Empire. Ambler and Buzzetti prompt the reader to consider whether and to what extent Xenophon infused the Anabasis with similar themes. The notes are often suggestive in tone rather than strictly explanatory, designed to enable creative, well-informed engagement between reader and text. The introduction makes the case for a political-philosophical reading of the Anabasis, clearly outlining philosophical context, political content, and other relevant thematic elements.

Sympathetic treatment of Xenophon’s philosophical writing has been growing over the past several decades, due in particular to the work of Leo Strauss. What is new about this volume is that it has made generally available an important scholarly perspective on the relationship of this philosophy to the Anabasis. Scholars will disagree on particular points of interpretation, but the non-specialist is in good hands. Historical context is not ignored, though neither is it the first priority. Strict history buffs will prefer the introduction and notes in the Oxford World’s Classics edition, but anyone interested in the political-philosophical dimension of the Anabasis, or simply wanting the most accurate English translation available, will find this edition well worth the investment.