Analysis of Herodotus and Sima Qian
History as we know it today as a means of self-knowledge, political enlightenment, and a critical account of the past has its origins in two ancient civilizations in Eurasia, which are Greece and China. Two of the best-known canonical formulations are the “histories” of Herodotus in Greece and “Shiji” of Sima Qian in China. Since the time and works of Sima Qian and Herodotus, history has been the study and analysis of human exploits in different geographies and ethnographies (Stuurman, 2008:1). Thomas R. Martin is an American-based historian who specializes in the field of Greco-Roman studies. He teaches courses in ...