The Melian Dialogue

“The Melian Dialogue” is found within Thucydides's larger work, History of the Peloponnesian War, published sometime in the late fifth century BCE, shortly after the conclusion of the events described within. The work is divided into eight “books.” “The Melian Dialogue” is located in Book 5, about halfway through the entirety of the work (and the war). It dramatizes a negotiation between Athens, one of the two great warring powers of the Greek world, and Melos, a tiny, neutral island in the middle of the Aegean sea. Athens intends to conquer Melos, and in these negotiations, the Athenian delegation clearly has the upper hand. They offer the Melians not a deal but an ultimatum: Surrender unconditionally or face “annihilation.” This is a unique passage in the book, as it is the only instance of a dramatized dialogue, whereas the remainder of the story is given in narration and, occasionally, oratory. Thucydides did not personally witness the negotiations. Having served as a general on the Athenian side, he was exiled from Athens for failing to prevent Spartan forces from capturing the city of Amphipolis. Following his exile from Athens, he spent the remaining 20 years of the war traveling the Greek world, gathering the