Gibbon - Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

Mr. Pessimistic

Picked this up a few weeks ago...I am eyeing it...not quite ready yet, but when I do start...anyone interested?

Mr. P.

The one thing of which I am positive is that there is much of which to be negative - Mr. P.

The pain in hell has two sides. The kind you can touch with your hand; the kind you can feel in your heart...Scorsese's "Mean Streets"

I came to kick ass and chew Bubble Gum...and I am all out of Bubble Gum - They Live, Roddy Piper

marti1900 · Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2005 7:55 am Post subject: Decline and Fall

I don't have enough lifespan left to tackle that one. Heck, I don't even buy green bananas.

Marti in Mexico

Chris OConnor · Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2005 10:07 am Post subject: Re: Decline and Fall

MadArchitect · Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2005 12:50 pm Post subject: Re: Decline and Fall

If you're reading an abridged version, I might be interested. At the moment, I don't know that I'm up to the investment of time and effort it would take to read the full "Decline and Fall". And if you are reading an abridgement, we should probably agree on a particular abridgement, so that we're not talking about different passages which one or another of us can't easily access.

Mr. Pessimistic · Posted: Sun Sep 11, 2005 11:30 am Post subject: Re: Decline and Fall

The edition I have is abridged and published by the Modern Classic Library Classics, 2005 Mass Market Edition, Edited by Hans-Friedrich Mueller, 1477 pages.

I am not ready to do this yet...just giving a heads up since it is so voluminous a read.

Mr. P.

The one thing of which I am positive is that there is much of which to be negative - Mr. P.

The pain in hell has two sides. The kind you can touch with your hand; the kind you can feel in your heart...Scorsese's "Mean Streets"

I came to kick ass and chew Bubble Gum...and I am all out of Bubble Gum - They Live, Roddy Piper

MadArchitect · Posted: Sun Sep 11, 2005 12:29 pm Post subject: Re: Decline and Fall

I'd also be interested in reading some historical accounts that are contemporary with Roman history -- Livy, Polybius, Julius Caeser, Tacitus, etc. Such accounts won't, of course, adhere to the sort of historical methodology that we expect of modern historians, but they have the benefit of being closer to the events they relate.

Mr. Pessimistic · Posted: Mon Sep 12, 2005 10:52 am Post subject: Re: Decline and Fall

You pick something as a supplement...but again...I am in no way ready right now to tackle this...I just wanted to float it for future consideration..

Mr. P.

The one thing of which I am positive is that there is much of which to be negative - Mr. P.

The pain in hell has two sides. The kind you can touch with your hand; the kind you can feel in your heart...Scorsese's "Mean Streets"

I came to kick ass and chew Bubble Gum...and I am all out of Bubble Gum - They Live, Roddy Piper

MadArchitect · Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 12:35 pm Post subject: Re: Decline and Fall

Penguin publishes a nice set of chronologically arranged collections of Plutarch's "Lives". Frankly, I find those less daunting that Gibbon's "Decline and Fall". We could start with the "Makers of Rome" volume, which presents short biographical sketches of a handful of the men responsible for the rise of Rome. Or we could read Polybius' "The Rise of the Roman Empire", which would be convenient for me since I already have a copy. But I'm not opposed to reading Gibbon, just daunted, and we have plenty of time to discuss the options.

Mr. Pessimistic · Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 12:38 pm Post subject: Re: Decline and Fall

Yes...sounds good Mad. I will look into those books and see if I can pick them up used somewhere.

Mr. P.

The one thing of which I am positive is that there is much of which to be negative - Mr. P.

The pain in hell has two sides. The kind you can touch with your hand; the kind you can feel in your heart...Scorsese's "Mean Streets"

I came to kick ass and chew Bubble Gum...and I am all out of Bubble Gum - They Live, Roddy Piper

MadArchitect · Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 12:53 pm Post subject: Re: Decline and Fall

If you can't find them, let me know. I see used copies of the Penguin classics editions in nearly every used bookstore I enter, but that may be some regional quirk. I wouldn't be opposed to picking a few up for you and sending them book rate, if push comes to shove.

Mr. Pessimistic · Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 1:25 pm Post subject: Re: Decline and Fall

GREAT! Thanks!

I have only two used shops by me...that I know of. One is more paperback novels, the other is more antiquarian, and very hit or miss.

I will try my favorite...EBAY...first!

Mr. P.

The one thing of which I am positive is that there is much of which to be negative - Mr. P.

The pain in hell has two sides. The kind you can touch with your hand; the kind you can feel in your heart...Scorsese's "Mean Streets"

I came to kick ass and chew Bubble Gum...and I am all out of Bubble Gum - They Live, Roddy Piper


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