# Book II: Euterpe explained — Histories

> Chapter companion for Histories by Herodotus.

## What happens

Herodotus recounts the reign of Cambyses, who inherits the Persian throne and marches against Egypt. He then delves into Egyptian history, including Psammetichos' experiment to determine the oldest civilization, the achievements of Sesostris, the story of Pheros' blindness and cure, and the tale of Proteus and Helen. The chapter also covers the revolt of the Egyptian 'Deserters' to Ethiopia and an account of the Nile's unknown sources.

## Themes in this chapter

### Power and Tyranny

Cambyses inherits absolute power and treats Ionians and Aeolians as slaves; Psammetichos uses his authority to conduct a controversial experiment on children.

### Cultural Relativism and Ethnography

Herodotus compares Egyptian and Greek customs, such as calendar reckoning, and records diverse cultural practices and beliefs.

### Hubris and Divine Retribution

King Pheros' presumptuous act of casting a spear into the Nile leads to blindness, which is later cured through a prescribed ritual.

## Character check-ins

### Cambyses

Son of Cyrus, inherits the Persian throne and leads an army against Egypt.

### Psammetichos

Egyptian king who conducted an experiment to determine the oldest civilization by isolating children.

### Sesostris

Egyptian king who ruled over Ethiopia and left statues; his deeds were compared favorably to Darius.

### Darius

Persian king who was refused permission to set up a statue in front of Sesostris' monuments.

### Proteus

Egyptian king of Memphis, associated with a sacred enclosure and the temple of the 'foreign Aphrodite'.

### Herodotus

Narrator who visited Memphis, Thebes, and Heliopolis to gather accounts from Egyptian priests.

## Key lines

> When Cyrus had brought his life to an end, Cambyses received the royal power in succession, being the son of Cyrus and of Cassandane... and he proceeded to march an army against Egypt

After Cyrus died, his son Cambyses became king and led a military campaign into Egypt.

_Sets the stage for Cambyses' conquest of Egypt._

> Psammetichos... contrived a device of the following kind:—Taking two newborn children... he gave them to a shepherd to bring up... charging him namely that no man should utter any word in their presence

Psammetichos ordered a shepherd to raise two infants in isolation to discover which language they would naturally speak.

_Describes Psammetichos' experiment to determine the oldest civilization._

> Sesostris... had subdued other nations besides, not fewer than he, and also the Scythians; but Darius had not been able to conquer the Scythians: wherefore it was not just that he should set up a statue in front of those which Sesostris had dedicated

The priest argued that Sesostris' achievements surpassed Darius', as Sesostris had conquered the Scythians while Darius had failed.

_Highlights the comparison between Egyptian and Persian rulers._

> Pheros... moved by presumptuous folly took a spear and cast it into the midst of the eddies of the stream; and immediately upon this he had a disease of the eyes and was by it made blind

King Pheros arrogantly threw a spear into the Nile and was struck blind as a result.

_Illustrates the theme of hubris and divine punishment._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/histories_se/chapters/book-ii-euterpe
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/histories_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/histories_se/chapters