Funeral Games (novel)

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Funeral Games
Funeral Games cover.jpg
First US edition
Author Mary Renault
LanguageEnglish
SeriesAlexander the Great
GenreHistorical novel
Publisher Pantheon Books (US)
John Murray (UK)
Publication date
November 1981
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
Media typePrint (hardback & paperback)
Pages335pp
ISBN 0-394-52068-8
OCLC 7554791
823/.912 19
LC Class PR6035.E55 F8 1981
Preceded by The Persian Boy  

Funeral Games is a 1981 historical novel by Mary Renault, dealing with the death of Alexander the Great and its aftermath, the gradual disintegration of his empire and the start of the Wars of the Diadochi. [1] It is the final book of her Alexander trilogy. [2]

Contents

Synopsis

The chapters of the book have the years of the events for their titles:

Characters

All human characters are actual historical individuals, unless otherwise noted.

Reception

Writing in The Boston Phoenix, Andy Gaus noted that "Renault's critics would say that the most invented thing in her books is the tone and prevailing attitude, that she describes ancient life as a constant high drama, whose personages, though historical in name, are tailored to fit romantic descriptions, but not to real human proportions. Her critics are not wrong. Her relentlessly one-sided characterizations would be ridiculous if the setting were not so distant and legendary, and the panoramic sweep of the action between exultation and destruction reminds you of those paperback romances with embossed covers and names like Chalice of Passion...Yet it all works and it's hard to say why. On the one hand it seems that the very grandeur of her subject matter elevates her undistinguished narrative voice. On the other hand, her extensive knowledge of all aspects of ancient life--clothing, customs, warfare, trades, religion, language--enables her to create complete, thoroughly detailed scenes out of the bare accounts furnished by Quintus Curtius and Diodorus Siculus." [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macedonia (ancient kingdom)</span> Ancient kingdom in the southern Balkans

Macedonia, also called Macedon, was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, which later became the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled by the royal Argead dynasty, which was followed by the Antipatrid and Antigonid dynasties. Home to the ancient Macedonians, the earliest kingdom was centered on the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, and bordered by Epirus to the southwest, Illyria to the northwest, Paeonia to the north, Thrace to the east and Thessaly to the south.

This article concerns the period 319 BC – 310 BC.

Year 319 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Cursor and Cerretanus. The denomination 319 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Year 317 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Brutus and Barbula. The denomination 317 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Year 316 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rutilus and Laenas. The denomination 316 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olympias</span> Mother of Alexander the Great (c. 375–316 BC)

Olympias was a Greek princess of the Molossians, the eldest daughter of king Neoptolemus I of Epirus, the sister of Alexander I of Epirus, the fourth wife of Philip II, the king of Macedonia and the mother of Alexander the Great. She was extremely influential in Alexander's life and was recognized as de facto leader of Macedon during Alexander's conquests. According to the 1st century AD biographer, Plutarch, she was a devout member of the orgiastic snake-worshiping cult of Dionysus, and he suggests that she slept with snakes in her bed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antigonus I Monophthalmus</span> Macedonian general, Diadochus, King of Asia

Antigonus I Monophthalmus was a Macedonian Greek general and successor of Alexander the Great. A prominent military leader in Alexander's army, he went on to control large parts of Alexander's former empire. He assumed the title of basileus (king) in 306 BC and reigned until his death. He was the founder of the Antigonid dynasty, which ruled over Macedonia until its conquest by the Roman Republic in 168 BC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cassander</span> King of Macedonia, Antipatrid dynasty

Cassander was king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia from 305 BC until 297 BC, and de facto ruler of southern Greece from 317 BC until his death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philip III of Macedon</span> King of Macedon from 323 to 317 BC

Philip III Arrhidaeus was king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia from 323 until his execution in 317 BC. He was a son of King Philip II of Macedon by Philinna of Larissa, and thus an elder half-brother of Alexander the Great. Named Arrhidaeus at birth, he assumed the name Philip when he ascended to the throne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander IV of Macedon</span> King of Macedon from 323/322–309 BC

Alexander IV, sometimes erroneously called Aegus in modern times, was the son of Alexander the Great and Princess Roxana of Bactria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antipater</span> Macedonian general (4th century BC)

Antipater was a Macedonian general and statesman under the successive kingships of Philip II of Macedon and his son, Alexander the Great. In the wake of the collapse of the Argead house, his son Cassander would eventually come to rule Macedonia as a king in his own right.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roxana</span> Sogdian or Bactrian princess who married Alexander the Great

Roxana sometimes known as Roxanne, Roxanna and Roxane was a Sogdian or a Bactrian princess whom Alexander the Great married after defeating Darius, ruler of the Achaemenid Empire, and invading Persia. The exact date of her birth is unknown, but she was probably in her early teens at the time of her wedding.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diadochi</span> Political rivals in the aftermath of Alexander the Greats death

The Diadochi were the rival generals, families, and friends of Alexander the Great who fought for control over his empire after his death in 323 BC. The Wars of the Diadochi mark the beginning of the Hellenistic period from the Mediterranean Sea to the Indus River Valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wars of the Diadochi</span> Series of wars between Alexander the Greats successors, 322–281 BC

The Wars of the Diadochi, or Wars of Alexander's Successors, were a series of conflicts fought between the generals of Alexander the Great, known as the Diadochi, over who would rule his empire following his death. The fighting occurred between 322 and 281 BC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eumenes</span> Greek general and satrap (fl. 362–315 BC)

Eumenes was a Greek general and satrap. He participated in the Wars of Alexander the Great, serving as both Alexander's personal secretary and as a battlefield commander. He later was a participant in the Wars of the Diadochi as a supporter of the Macedonian Argead royal house. He was executed after the Battle of Gabiene in the winter of 316–315 BC.

Polyperchon, was a Macedonian Greek general who served both Philip II and Alexander the Great and then played an active role in the ensuing battles for control between Alexander's generals.

Cleopatra of Macedonia, or Cleopatra of Epirus was an ancient Macedonian princess and later queen regent of Epirus. The daughter of Philip II of Macedon and Olympias of Epirus, she was the only full sibling of Alexander the Great. Her other siblings include half sisters Thessalonike and Cynane, and half-brother Philip III of Macedon.

The Second War of the Diadochi was the conflict between the coalition of Polyperchon, Olympias and Eumenes and the coalition of Cassander, Antigonus, Ptolemy and Lysimachus following the death of Cassander's father, Antipater.

Eurydice, often referred to as Adea Eurydice, was the Queen consort of Macedon, wife of Philip III and daughter of Amyntas IV and Cynane.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Macedonia (ancient kingdom)</span>

The kingdom of Macedonia was an ancient state in what is now the Macedonian region of northern Greece, founded in the mid-7th century BC during the period of Archaic Greece and lasting until the mid-2nd century BC. Led first by the Argead dynasty of kings, Macedonia became a vassal state of the Achaemenid Empire of ancient Persia during the reigns of Amyntas I of Macedon and his son Alexander I of Macedon. The period of Achaemenid Macedonia came to an end in roughly 479 BC with the ultimate Greek victory against the second Persian invasion of Greece led by Xerxes I and the withdrawal of Persian forces from the European mainland.

References

  1. "Funeral Games by Mary Renault" . Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  2. "Funeral Games (Alexander the Great, #3)". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  3. Gaus, Andy (12 January 1982). "After the lion, jackals". The Boston Phoenix. Retrieved 7 July 2024.

Sources

The historical sources listed for this book are: