Book 1, Croesus的悲剧性

    希罗多德《历史》一书开篇就写道：
The purpose [of this book] is to prevent the traces of human events from being erased by time, and to preserve the fame of the important and remarkable achievements produced by both Greeks and non-Greeks; among the matters covered is, in particular, the cause of the hostilities between Greeks and non-Greeks.
    即：（1）使人类功业不致被遗忘
           （2）保存希腊人和异邦人的重要功绩，尤其是
           （3）他们敌意的来源
 
    第一卷在很好地回应希罗多德开篇就指出的三个目的的同时，似乎也蕴含了一个贯穿整部《历史》的母题，即命运。在探讨“命运”这一主题时，希罗多德就不单单是一个记录者，甚至不单单是一个探究者，而是一个思想家。
    
    Croesus的一生，包括他的家族的兴衰，都和某种预定的命运紧紧相连。其祖Gyges窃取Lydia王位的过程即是一连串的“别无选择”，而Gyges的行为也早早地决定了他子孙的命运。Croesus失败的原因表面上是神谕的模糊和轻率的解读，实质上则是注定的命运。Croesus失败后对Delphi的祭司们兴师问罪，Pythia的回应十分精准：
Not even a god can escape his ordained fate.
    明确了这一点，再去看历史长河中任何一个时刻、任何一个个体的挣扎，都会感觉到无力和可笑。然而这种挣扎又不可避免，因为没有人知道自己的命运是怎样，就像Solon拜访Croesus时所说的：
Human life is entirely a matter of chance...it is necessary to consider the end of anything, however, and to see how it will turn out, because the god often offers prosperity to men, but then destroys them utterly and completely.
    宏观上命运是注定的，微观上命运却又是变幻莫测。Pythia和Solon这两次关键的发言，道出了Croesus家族悲剧的源头。