International relations after the Second World War

In the immediate aftermath of war, in Europe in particular, many countries faced a great deal of problems as they sought to rebuild. Social unrest and economic instability were particularly prominent, as people struggled to justify their existence, whilst many in authority took advantage of this instability. This was an important time in politics and a topic relating to international relations after the Second World War would make for an interesting politics. To what extent was Germany's division illustrative of the state of international relations at this time? Would a 'united' Germany have led to closer international relations?

• How did the state of Europe in the wake of war make many countries susceptible to the Soviet Union and their communist ideals?
• What were the War's aims? Did it achieve them?
• How were European relations effectively structured for the next fifty years by the immediate aftermath of war?
• How did the 'Cold War' start? What were its most significant influences on international relations?
• How did the effects of the 'Cold War' spread so quickly? How was it resolved?
• What was the biggest achievement in international relations in the aftermath of War?
• How successful were the reparations provided by the US in securing countries against the threat provided by the Soviet Union?
• Why were nuclear weapons developed? How did they affect international relations?

International law

The development of international law both regionally and throughout the globe has served to influence international relations and political views. But at the same time there is a feeling that such law is only useful where it serves a prescribed purpose that the majority chooses to recognize. In what ways has the law of the EU served to influence relations between their member states? Has this always been a good thing? Discuss with examples.

• Why does the law punish some countries when they break it, whilst others are left to their own devices?
• How successful has the United Nations proved to be as a law enforcement agency?
• Is the US above the law?
• Why are countries like China and Russia allowed to get away with breaches of the law as it stands internationally, whilst Iraq and Afghanistan are punished?
• Were the actions of the US in Iraq and Afghanistan legitimate?
• Is the use of force always justified?
• What reforms are needed by international law to improve international relations?
• In the face of complex politics, can international law ever be universally applicable?
• Why could it be considered best for international relations to have one set of rules for some countries and another set for others?

Translate the texts.

Alexander the Great

Text 1

Alexander the Great was born at the right time, with the right genes, and the right personality. By the time he died, at age 33, he ruled over 2 million square miles. He never lost a battle (except one against nature). Few men have changed the world as much as he. Taught by Aristotle, the young prince had other advantages. Through his mother, Olympias, he was descended (it is said) from Achilles. Through his murdered father, Philip II of Macedon (pronounced “Bilip” by his countrymen), he inherited a great army. Propelled by ambition and brilliant strategy, Alexander was a military genius. Thousands of years later he was still a role model for would-be conquerors, like Napoleon Bonaparte.

Text 2

Before Alexander III (later called "The Great") was born in Pella, likely on or about July 20 in 356 B.C., the Persian Empire was the dominant power in that part of the world. Cyrus, who founded the empire, and his successors who followed, including Darius, were intent to keep their conquered lands and subjected people. (A century earlier, some of the Persian-controlled territory had been colonized by Greece.) Philip II (Alexander's father) was also a man of military might and persuasive abilities. During his 23-year reign, he built a formidable army, subdued many Greek city-states, and established a Macedonian kingdom which provided protection for his people. Before his death, he considered invading Persia to further strengthen and solidify his country's position. Wishing his son (then fourteen years old) to study with the best teachers available, Philip sought out Aristotle and invited him to educate Alexander. Scholars believe that Alexander's mother (who reportedly learned to read when she was middle-aged) also favored the selection of Plato's brightest pupil.

Text 3

Aristotle was born in Stageira (located in the current Greek prefecture of Chalcidice [also called Halkidiki], Central Macedonia District, just north of the current village of Stagira). Not as famous then as he would become later, Aristotle had studied with Plato who had learned from Socrates. After he arrived in Pella, Aristotle (throughout the ages regarded as one of the best thinkers who ever lived) set up his royal school at Mieza (modern-day Naoussa) where archeologists believe they have uncovered its remains. For the next six years, Greece's greatest mind likely taught Greece's greatest conqueror the following subjects: Greek; Hebrew; Babylonian; Latin. The nature of the sea and the wind. The course of the stars. The life-span of the world. The revolutions of the firmament. The great teacher also showed his royal student the meaning of justice and the skills of rhetoric. And he warned him against the wiles of "loose women."

Text 4

When he was a boy, and a man, Alexander had the same favorite book: The Iliad, by Homer. Since Olympias believed that she was descended from Achilles, her son claimed the same ancestor. It is said that Alexander's tutor, Lysimachus, gained great favor when he nicknamed his young charge "Achilles." Aristotle, at Alexander's request, helped to prepare a special copy of The Iliad which the prince prized so highly, he kept it with him always. Even during his years of conquest he traveled with it, calling Homer's tale his "journey-book of excellence in war." Every night he slept with it, and a dagger, under his pillow. Alexander spoke fast, walked fast, and was so short that when he conquered Persia even a stool wasn't high enough for his feet as he sat on the Persian throne. He carried his head at a slight angle and his eyes - captured by the official court sculptor Lysippus - gazed intently. Sleep was a bother for both him and Aristotle. Of his physical features, this much seems certain: Like his father, he was a very handsome young man. His nose, as statues and paintings stress, was straight; his forehead was prominent and his chin short but jutting; his mouth revealed emotion, and the lips were often shown curling. Born under the sign of Leo, Alexander's images on coins depict him wearing the trademark lion-skin cap of yet another claimed ancestor, Heracles (depicted fighting the Nemean lion). Some scholars think he wore the lion headdress in everyday life.

Text 5

When Alexander was about twelve years old, one of his father's friends gave Philip a beautiful black horse named Bucephalas. Although the horse was extremely expensive - more than three times what one would normally pay at the time for a magnificent mount - Philip was distressed when he inspected the animal. Out of control, it was bucking, kicking and refusing to take commands. Philip, not anticipating what was about to happen, ordered the horse to be removed. The king's son, however, had noticed something significant about Bucephalas. He seemed afraid of his own shadow. Taking advantage of that, Alexander soothed the horse and unlike all others, was able to ride him. Philip, it is said, wept for joy and declared that Macedonia would never keep such a prince within her own boundaries.

Text 6

What was life like in Pella, where both Alexander and his father were born? The towns, and its royal sites, have been archeologically rediscovered during the past fifty years, thereby allowing us to examine the place where the future conqueror spent his youth. Ancient Pella was connected to the sea (the Thermaic Gulf) by a navigable inlet. Because the harbor silted over long ago, however, the site is landlocked today. Based on remains, scholars have reconstructed the royal palace. They have also unearthed other important places and artifacts: The palace court (although scholars believe the mosaic floors are post-Alexander); Bust of Alexander the Great, found at Pella; Ancient pipes uncovered in modern excavations; A Macedonian gold crown worn by royalty. Alexander's future conquests made himself, and his people, wealthy. That wealth is reflected in today's archeological finds at the old Macedonian capital. Some of the oldest mosaics in the world have been unearthed at Pella. Among them (from a time following Alexander) are: A mythological god (Dionysis) riding a leopard; Two warriors (the one on the left is Alexander) fighting a lion; A mythological centaur. The Romans sacked Pella in 168 B.C., and took its treasury to Rome. In the first century B.C., an earthquake destroyed the town. Modern archeologists have uncovered stores, and workshops, with their goods still recognizable. Residents rebuilt the city over its ruins, thereby preserving them. Long before the earthquake rocked Pella, however, a man-made incident rocked Philip's kingdom. It happened unexpectedly, during a time of celebration.

Text 7

In the summer of 336 B.C., Philip II was home in Macedonia. His conquests had been many (like Mount Pangeon which provided a source of gold to fund Philip's expeditions). Towns had been named after him (like Philippi, later made famous when Paul the apostle preached there). But the once-handsome man now carried the scars of war. After two decades of fighting, his immediately noticeable injury was a missing eye. Alexander (who had a previous falling-out with his father) was also at the royal palace that summer day since his family was celebrating both a wedding and Philip's upcoming invasion of Asia. Philip, known as a "man whose like had never been seen in Europe," had given his daughter (Cleopatra) in marriage to an ally (King Alexander of Epirus). Philip himself had married - again - not long before. He had already divorced Olympias, Alexander's mother (who was from Epirus, not Macedonia). The king's new wife Eurydice (his seventh, also called Cleopatra) was a young Macedonian, with whom Philip had a young daughter (named Europe) and an infant son (named Caranus, after the founder of the Macedonian royal dynasty). Angered by her own denigration, Olympias was also concerned about the succession of Alexander. In Macedonia, it was never certain that the oldest son would become king. And Alexander, unlike Caranus, was not a full-blooded Macedonian. Although it may not have disturbed Philip, there is another interesting piece of Macedonian history to consider. None of Philip's predecessors had died in his own bed. Since the king's power was purely personal, his authority was as absolute as he could make it. Homer's statement, made hundreds of years before, still applied: "Rule by might." In Homer's world, heroes strive for glory since death is inescapable. And in Philip's world, a loss of face could lead to a loss of title - or worse. As part of the celebrations, Philip ordered his bodyguards to leave him for a time. (Philip was a leader, not a tyrant, and it would have sent the wrong signal for him to attend a public celebration, in the royal theater, surrounded by armed men.) Pausanias, one of Philip's guards, disobeyed those orders and lingered behind. Unnoticed, Pausanias clutched a Celtic dagger which he plunged into Philip, killing him. Recent excavations have revealed the probable spot in the theater where Philip was stabbed. To this day, no one really knows who plotted Philip's murder. Many scholars point to Olympias who surely had motive. Alexander was soon cleared as a suspect, although scholars have wondered about his involvement. The prince acted quickly, however, to secure his power base and to make sure he would become his father's successor. More than 2,300 years later - in one of the most stunning archeological achievements of the 20th century - a tomb, believed to be Philip's, was rediscovered. Left untouched for thousands of years, its contents were nothing short of astonishing.

Text 8

Before Pella became the royal capital, the ancient town of Aigai had served that purpose. Since at least 1850, scholars believed the tranquil hills of nearby Vergina contained the graves or tombs (you need Real Player for this video link) of Macedonian royalty. In 1977, the late Greek archeologist, Manolis Andronikos, working in Vergina (also spelled Verghina) discovered several tombs. Two had never been plundered. One of those (believed, at the time, to be Philip's) contained a gold casket (called a larnax) with a royal Macedonian star burst on its cover. Inside the casket were cremated remains. Although there is scholarly disagreement, Andronikos (who published a book with numerous pictures of his findings) and his colleagues believed those cremated remains were of Alexander's father, Philip II. A skull - believed, by some, to be Philip's - was also recovered. The Great Tumulus Museum at Vergina, site of ongoing excavations (like the town's Acropolis), possesses the golden casket, a recovered bust of Philip II, and many artifacts. This video (you need Real Player to watch it) will enlighten you about some of the treasures found in Philip's grave. Based on their discoveries, scholars have reconstructed the royal palace where Philip and Alexander lived. Archeologists have turned over their incredible finds to Greek museums.

Text 9

For 150 years before Alexander's birth, the city-states of mainland Greece fought off-and-on with each other and with foreigners. At the time, towns along the eastern Aegean Sea (known then as Asia Minor and today as Turkey) were also Greek.Those Greek Asia Minor cities (like Ephesus) were frequently dominated by non-Greek powers. They once owed their allegiance to the Kingdom of Lydia (anchored in its capital of Sardis where a temple to Artemis [Diana] was fourth largest in the ancient world). Thereafter, they were run by Persia (today's Iran) after Lydia was overwhelmed by the meteoric rise of Persia as an imperial power. In 499 B.C., when Greek cities in Asia Minor rebelled against Persian control, forces from the Greek mainland came to their aid. Darius (in 490) and Xerxes (in 480 B.C.), retaliating against the helpers, launched two unsuccessful invasions. Persian defeats meant the mainland was temporarily secure from foreigners, but prominent Greek cities soon relapsed into hostilities between themselves. The long years of fighting between Sparta and Athens (known as the Peloponnesian War) exhausted everyone. Shifting loyalties continued and, by 386 B.C., Athens and Sparta conceded Persian dominion over the Greek cities of mainland Asia Minor in exchange for recognition of their own claims. That peace did not last long either, with endless acts of violence and destruction continuing even when patriotic motives were not obvious. Macedonia had been largely exempt from this miserable state of affairs. Spared from Greco-Persian political wrangling, Macedonia was not part of the treaty which forfeited the Greek cities of Asia Minor. So when Philip II, who had been acting as regent in Macedon, made himself king in 358 B.C., he and his highly trained standing army ultimately accomplished what the Greeks needed but could not achieve. Philip imposed peace. Summoning the Greek city-states to a conference in Corinth, Philip emerged as leader of a Greek federation which would wage an offensive against Persia. Before he could enact his plans of war, however, Philip was murdered in 336. Executing his father's assassin without asking questions, and having anyone else who threatened his position as Philip's heir killed as well, Alexander - at age 20 - became king of Macedonia. Anyone who thought he was not up to the job would soon learn otherwise.

Text 10

It is often said that Alexander's army made him great - but his murdered father, Philip of Macedon, made the army great. Using professional soldiers, not a citizen-based militia, Philip created different types of military units which gave him diversified strength. Infantry, cavalry, foot soldiers who employed extra-long spears (called a sarissa), and elite foot guardsmen (called hypaspists) all made the Macedonian army a formidable fighting machine. Alexander, who had fought with his father against Athens in the Battle of Chaeronea, thus inherited a standing army which employed unusual instruments of war and unique battle formations. Typical Macedonian battle formation under Philip and Alexander. Typical "hammer and anvil" tactics of the Macedonian army under Philip and Alexander. The sarissa was a Macedonian weapon which was often fifteen-feet long. Soldiers, in a battle formation called the Macedonia phalanx. The phalanx with front weapons extended. Macedonians were known as great horsemen and Macedonian Companions rode with the King. Bronze helmets, typical of the time, were not unique to the Macedonian army. Solidifying his position soon after taking power, Alexander marched south into Greece and freed Greek cities from Persian rule. Heading north to Gordium (the capital of ancient Phrygia), he made relatively short work of a famous legend. Whoever untied the Gordian Knot, it was said, would rule the world. Alexander approached the problem in a different way. He undid the knot by simply slashing it with his sword, then unraveling it. His conquests were just beginning.

Text 11

Of all the foes Alexander wanted to best, his primary objective was Darius III. Head of the Persian Empire, Darius was used to winning his battles. But he was not accustomed to opposing adversaries whose military genius and strategy were equal to, or better than, his own. While Alexander used the strategies and battle formations developed by his father, his ability to improvise on short notice was just one mark of his outstanding leadership. One of his early plans was to liberate the Greek cities along the eastern Aegean Sea, on the mainland of Asia Minor. Crossing the sea with his men, Alexander's first stop was at Troy where he visited the grave of Achilles and paid homage to the gods. (That moment was artistically depicted, nearly 2000 years later, by the German painter Johann Schoenfeld.) He then turned south with his men, personally leading the Companion Cavalry. Darius, meanwhile, was at his remote capital in Susa. Alexander's reputation was still in-the-making, and the Persian leader thought his troops could be capably managed by the governors of his western provinces. (They were aided by a Greek mercenary, Memnon the Rhodian, who had already proved his mettle in prior Macedonian battles). The battle at the Granicus, a river in Asia Minor, sent Darius the message that Alexander was no ordinary foe. In 333, Alexander met Darius at the mountain pass at Issus. Although greatly outnumbered, the Macedonian leader took advantage of the narrow field of battle and worked it to his advantage. Not used to such brilliant strategy from his opponents, Darius was shocked by Alexander's ability. A famous mosaic, discovered in the excavations of Pompeii, graphically depicts Darius' surprise. Believed to be based on a contemporary drawing, the Pompeii mosaic is the source of the most commonly used pictures of both Alexander and Darius. The work is now called the "Alexander Mosaic" and was originally found at the House of the Faun in Pompeii. It is maintained today at the Museo Archeologico Nazionale Napoli (the National Archeology Museum in Naples). It is believed the entire work portrays the battle of Issus. Despite his surprise at Alexander's tactics, Darius escaped. Thereafter, marching down the Mediterranean Coast, into Damascus, Alexander captured the family and war chest of the Persian ruler. As he victoriously continued down the Phoenician coast, he easily captured every city except Tyre. It took a seven-month siege before that city gave up as well. Having secured the eastern Aegean, Alexander and his men headed to Egypt where he founded the city of Alexandria. Ultimately one of the cultural centers of the known world, it was home of the famous lighthouse (one of the wonders of the ancient world) and of the Great Library (a center of learning until it was destroyed). Chasing Darius was still on Alexander's mind as he left Egypt in 331. Having captured territory between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers (today's Iraq), Alexander's men found the Persians at the Plain of Gaugamela. This battle, and its aftermath, would mark a turning point for the Persian leader.

Text 12

The Macedonians (who were grossly outnumbered) wanted to attack the Persians at night, but Alexander would not take advantage of Darius' vulnerability. Believing he would ultimately defeat the Persian ruler, Philip's son wanted to face his enemy on the battlefield in the light of day. Only then, he reasoned, after a fairly fought fight, would Darius cease to wage war against the Macedonians. The exact location of the Gaugamela battle is not clear. Many scholars think it was at Tel Gomel which is east of modern Mosul. Historical descriptions paint the scene as just east of the Tigris River. The fighting took place in October, 331 B.C. Darius wanted to fight on a flat plain which would benefit his numerically superior and specially recruited cavalry forces. He also used scythed chariots and, before the battle, ordered bushes and vegetation removed from the battlefield to maximize the chariots' effectiveness. Before the Battle of Gaugamela, Macedonians had never seen elephants. Darius used about fifteen of them - some scholars think the number was as high as fifty - supported by Indian chariots. Alexander, meanwhile, personally commanded the Macedonian right flank. Alexander's men slaughtered the Persians, but once again Darius escaped - this time due, in large part, to strategic mistakes by Parmenion, Alexander's general. The former Persian emperor fled to Arbela (modern-day Arbil). (Note, however, the contemporary story of the battle, written on a cuneiform tablet, which states that Darius' troops deserted him. A Macedonian had thus supplanted the Persian Emperor as a ruler in Asia. Alexander was crowned in a lavish ceremony in Arbela. Darius, still on the run, was gone from the city by the time the Macedonians arrived. Alexander sent letters to all Greek cities in Asia Minor, advising them that he had banished tyranny from the land.

The rich cities of Babylon and Susa were the next Persian towns to fall. When he reached Persepolis, capital of the Persian Empire, Alexander allowed his army to rest. Four months later, before they left Persepolis, the Macedonians burned the royal palace. In 330, trouble developed in Alexander's inner circle. Allegations of a plot to kill him were brought against some of his officers, including Philotas, a lifelong friend. He was shortly executed. Months later, after a night of heavy drinking, Alexander's close friend Cleitus, son of Parmenion, hurtled insults against him. Annoyed, Alexander ran his spear through Cleitus. When he realized he'd killed his close Companion, Alexander was so upset he nearly committed suicide. Following the rest at Persepolis, Alexander continued to pursue Darius. When he finally caught up with him, Darius was already dead. His own men had killed him in his coach. Alexander rewarded the assassin's treachery with execution but gave Darius a royal funeral. Although Alexander and his men were winning victory after victory in Persia, there were major differences between Greek and Persian culture. Trying to reconcile some of those disparities, Alexander married Roxane, a Persian woman from Bactria (today's northern Afghanistan). He encouraged his men to likewise marry Persian women. Some of Alexander's troops thought their leader had gone too far when he began to wear Persian instead of Macedonian clothing. The sheer force of his magnetic personality, however, convinced them to stick with their general. He would next lead them to battle in India, the land of elephants.

Text 13

Although Alexander and his troops first encountered elephants at Gaugamela, scholars believe those 15-20 animals were not a major factor in the fight. That would come later, in India, at the battle of the Hydaspes. Horses, not accustomed to the sight of elephants and unfamiliar with their scent, can panic when they see such huge creatures. Such was also true of the Macedonian cavalry and their mounts. On the other hand, elephants - as the largest animals on earth - have no significant natural enemy except man. What type of elephant did Alexander and his army encounter during their time in India? Then, as now, there were two types of elephants: Asian (Elephas Maximus) and African (Loxodonta Africana). Asian elephants - like those faced by Alexander - are slightly smaller than African elephants. Both species can run as fast as 25 miles (40 km) per hour for short distances. Charging elephants (click on the top-left button and be patient as this video link loads) are an unbelievable sight. The Asian elephant (don't miss this link with nineteen different movies of Asian elephants in natural habitats), like its African relative, has a life span of about seventy years. But it is distinguished from the African elephant (there are thirty-two movie clips in this link, including a running herd on the third page) in that Elephas Maximus has much smaller ears, a flat forehead with two humps, and more toes and toenails on both its fore and hind feet. The highest point of an Asian elephant is its head; the highest point of an African elephant is its shoulders. Male and female African elephants have tusks, while female Asian elephants have none.

Because elephants eat so much, their teeth wear out. Over its lifetime, an adult typically has six different sets of teeth. When the last set wears out, the elephant could starve to death. The population of Asian elephants today is estimated between 35,000 and 50,000 in the wild with an additional 15,000 in captivity. They are endangered and a charging Elephas Maximus has been known to trample people to death - especially when humans move near the elephants' natural environment. It was a different story, however, on the day in 326 B.C. that Alexander and his men encountered elephants on an Indian battlefield. On that day, the animals would face a horde of fearless men intent on killing them.

Text 14

Ever the brilliant strategist, Alexander realized he would need a different type of army to fight in India. No Macedonian had ever been this far east. Alexander and his men had no pre-tested battle plans to adapt. Instinctively, Alexander knew he had to cut personnel, burn excess baggage and eliminate spoils of war. Wisely, he included Persian cavalrymen in his ranks and made a plan to fight against the Indian elephants his troops would surely face. In July of 326, when he and his men reached the Hydaspes (a river located in today’s Pakistan and now called Jhelum), they more than met their match with Porus, a renowned Indian leader. (This is the possible spot of the Indian camp.) Porus and his men fought with elephants which the Macedonians had first encountered at Gaugamela but had never seen in a charge. Even with their 200 elephants, the Indians were not able to withstand the Macedonian phalanx as it approached with shields locked and sarissas extended. Robin Lane Fox describes the scene of carnage: While archers and Agrianian javelin-men aimed at the mahouts themselves, the 3,000 veterans of the Shield Bearers swung axes at the elephants’ legs and daringly slashed at their trunks with curved scimitars. Alexander knew the weak points of an elephant and had equipped his men accordingly.Although the Indians were defeated, Alexander allowed Porus to continue to govern his own land. That approach to conquered territories and leaders was one of Alexander’s trademark strengths and was a key ingredient of his astonishing success. He suffered a major loss in the battle, however. Bucephalus, whom Alexander had ridden into every major battle throughout his career, was injured and died. (The depicted mosaic was likely created at Herculaneum, near Pompeii, between 300-250 B.C.) Grief-stricken, Alexander memorialized his horse by naming a town - Buckephalia - after him. (Scholars today are not sure where that town was located.) Despite the loss of his horse, Alexander wanted to march to the Ganges River. His troops, wanting to return home, refused to go further. Favorably considering their position, Alexander agreed to turn back. As he and his men traveled south, Alexander debated philosophy with the Brahmans (Indian philosophers) while his forces subdued Indian villages. His Aristotelean education must have astonished the Indians. Hundreds of years later, they remembered him as both a fearless conqueror and as a wise philosopher. Alexander was wounded by the Malli, in January of 325, as he continued toward the mouth of the Indus River. An arrow had pierced both his breastplate and his rib cage. Rescued by his officers, Alexander did not recover overnight. Despite his injuries, the army reached the mouth of the Indus by July of 325 and, taking a westward turn, headed for home.

Text 15

Alexander had to make a difficult choice for the first leg of the army's homeward trek. He could keep all of his men together, and march through the Gedrosian Desert, or he could split his forces in two with some of the men, commanded by Nearchus, traveling part of the distance by sea. He chose to split up his men. Following the land route, Alexander lost an astonishing number of his army to starvation and horrific desert conditions. Scholars believe those losses may have been as high as seventy-five percent of the men who were alive when the desert crossing began. Reaching Carmania, Alexander and the other Gedrosian survivors recovered their strength and caught up with Nearchus and the fleet in Harmezia. Reunited, the army marched to Persis where the men rested. Retracing their prior route, Alexander and his men once again reached Susa. There, in 324 B.C., he took a second Persian wife - Stateira - a daughter of the slain Persian Emperor, Darius III. That same year, while Alexander and his army were in Ecbatana, Alexander lost his closest male friend and companion. Hephaistion, who very capably commanded the cavalry and with whom Alexander likely had an intimate relationship for many years, contracted a fever and died. Overwhelmed with grief, Alexander dealt with his loss by fighting another battle, this time against the Cossaens. Throughout his years of conquest, Alexander founded many towns named after him. Those places would help to memorialize his extraordinary career. Personally, however, he was nearing the end of his own life. Unlike that of his ancestors, Alexander's death would not be violent.

Text 16

In 323, Alexander wanted to take his army to Babylon. There were so many omens against it, however, that Alexander wondered whether he had fallen out of favor with his gods. Despite the warnings and concerns, he followed his own desire and arrived in Babylon in the late spring. Not long after, Alexander developed a fever which lasted ten days. While some scholars think he had been poisoned, that seems unlikely given the length of his illness. On the 7th of June, many of his men filed past his bedside although he was no longer coherent. With Alexander as their leader, these Macedonians had: Marched more than 22,000 miles. Overthrown the Persian empire. Conquered approximately 2 million miles of territory. Established new towns throughout the journey. Never lost a battle except with the desert. On June 11th, he was gone. Squabbling over his replacement, and who should control his remains, erupted immediately. Ptolemy, Alexander's great friend and general who ultimately became Pharaoh of Egypt, had the prince of Macedonia embalmed in the Egyptian manner and his men brought him to Alexandria. There he was enshrined in a sarcophagus. Hundreds of years later, Caesar Augustus wanted to gaze upon Alexander's body. The historian Suetonius, in his Life of Augustus, tells the story:

When Alexander's sarcophagus was brought from its shrine, Augustus gazed at the body, then laid a crown of gold on its glass case and scattered some flowers to pay his respects. When they asked if he would like to see Ptolemy too, "I wished to see a king," he replied, "I did not wish to see corpses." (The Lives of the Twelve Caesars, Life of Augustus, 18.1.) No conqueror, before or since, has ever achieved as much. Because he failed to name a successor, however, his empire soon fell apart. Alexander thought the honor should go to the man most worthy. No one, apparently, fit that description. No one came close:

As a conqueror he came less to change than to inherit and restore; but as a man he inspired and demanded what few leaders since have dared to consider possible. (Robin Lane Fox, Alexander the Great, page 59.) Alexander proved what has been known ever since: The magnetic force and sheer drive of one's personality is sometimes enough to change the world.

 

Key to exercises

UNIT 1.

A.

2 H, 3 P, 4 P, 5 F, 6 F, 7 P, 8 P, 9 F, 10 H, 11H

B.

1. I usually go to work by car, but I am going on the bus this week while my car is being mended.

2. A: Do you know where Brian is? B: I haven’t seen him since lunch. I think he is in the kitchen. He is probably doing the washing up.

3. My daughter is a vegetarian. She doesn’t eat meat. It is sometimes difficult in a restaurant when she finds that they don’t have any vegetarian dishes. That’s why she usually telephones before to find out what’s on the menu.

4. A: How long have you been living in Liverpool?

B: Only three weeks. We are staying in a hotel until we have found a house to buy.

5. A: I met George while I was waiting for the bus tonight.

B: How is he? I haven’t seen him for months.

A: He seemed to do very well.

B: I think he has just got a new job, hasn’t he?

A: Well he just left his old job about a month ago, but he hasn’t found anything else yet. He is still looking for something.

C.

1. A: Are you doing anything tomorrow?

B: Not really. We are just staying at home.

2. A: Is Peter living at home now?

B: No, he is still at university at Sheffield.

3. A: How about your exams? Have you passed?

B: I don’t know. I’ll let you know as soon as I ’ ve heard the results.

4. A: Is Jack the boy who is coming to stay next week?

B: No. Jack lives just near us. It’s Dan who’ s coming to stay

5. A: Have you seen Jenny recently?

B: No, but we’ll probably see her when we go to Leeds.

6. A: Will you come home after you’ ve finished work?

B: No. I ’m meeting Joe in town and we ’re going to the theatre.

 

UNIT 2.

A.

3. Where did you go in England?

4. We went to London, but we didn’t go to Oxford.

5. What play did they see at Stradford?

6. They saw Hamlet, but they didn’t see Julius Caesar.

7. Did Angelo buy any records in London?

8. He bought some clothes, but he didn’t buy any records.

9. Did you enjoy your holiday?

10. I enjoyed the holiday, but I didn’t enjoy the food.

B.

2. Excuse me. I just wanted to know if you were free at the moment. P

3. If I wanted to know, I would ask. H

4. Fred telephoned yesterday and left a message. N

5. I wish it was time for lunch. H

6. I first went abroad when I was 17. N

7. I am writing because I wondered if I could offer a useful suggestion. P

8. Jenny wished she hadn’t been so careless. H

9. We looked everywhere for the money, but we couldn’t find it. N

10. You must take a map with you. Suppose you got lost, then what would you do? H

C.

2. He opened the book and started to read.

3. We were enjoying the film, when suddenly the electricity went off.

4. When she heard the news, she began to cry.

5. Everyone was talking quietly. Suddenly the door burst open.

6. When I heard the doorbell, I ran downstairs.

UNIT 3. A 5, B 4, C 3, D 2, E 1

UNIT 4.