In response to Demosthenes' diatribes against him, Philip of Macedon wrote a fascinating letter to the Athenians. Read through the letter. What evidence do you see here of Philip's skill as a diplomat? What evidence that he in some ways deserves the title "great"?Wednesday, November 20, 2019
Philip's Letter to the Athenians (extra credit)
In response to Demosthenes' diatribes against him, Philip of Macedon wrote a fascinating letter to the Athenians. Read through the letter. What evidence do you see here of Philip's skill as a diplomat? What evidence that he in some ways deserves the title "great"?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
It seems as though Philip, in his letter to the Athenians, points out the Senate's double standard and presses them for their lack of accountability regarding the ambassadors he sent to the Athenians. I think it's smart that Philip addresses this letter to the "Senate and the People of Athens." The Senate should speak for and represent what the people want, but this isn't always the case. His letter in reality calls out the Senate and at the same time calls on the people of Athens to hold the Senate in check. This is gutsy, but I think it causes Athenians to really look into government affairs and keep their leaders accountable. Philip puts himself into a position of trust in the Athenians by doing this and challenges the people to take advantage of being a part of a democracy.
ReplyDelete-Jonathon Fargher
Philip was clearly both a strong political and military leader. By exploiting the internal strife of Athens (of which there was plenty) he was able to lessen the harshness of his words - he could have been very aggressive given the political climate and the relative strength of Macedon to Athens, but he doesn't seem to be a bully. He seems to subscribe to political realism, which isn't always just or decent, but also has a different view on both those things, making it very efficient and politically effective. He wants Athens to know that he is being fair in all of this and has the better argument - but at the end he clearly does not hesitate much to send out his military as soon as less violent options fail. I think it'd be fair to say that he was 'great' in terms of accomplishments, which included giving his son the position he had to do all the great (not necessarily good) things he did as well.
ReplyDeletePhillip is a much more tactful negotiator than one might assume for one of his position. Instead of just making threats that he could either back up or not (though he most likely could, judging by the size of his army), he instead exploits the internal strife between the Athenian peoples and their senate, which has been corrupt and in possession of a double standard he's quick to point out.
ReplyDeleteHe honestly comes off sounding more like a friend to the peoples of Athens than an enemy or even potential enemy, and by the time the letter ends, he has not only shamed many Athenian higher ups, but has made himself out to be the good guy to the eyes of any with virtue in their heart.
The Athenians started to despise Philip and were leaning towrds supporting his enemies. This is because they love freedom and thought Philip was trying to take away that freedom. Philip just wanted to unite them. He wrote a beautiful letter which coaxed the people into trusting him. Im amazed that a letter even worked, if i thought someone was trying to take away my freedom I definitely would not have been appeased by that, but his words were honey and made sense to the people.
ReplyDeleteHe is a good diplomat because he stated that he sent Ambassadors which means he thinks peacefully first to try and have things done peacefully.
ReplyDelete