Steven Pressfield
Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermopylae (1998)
Author: Steven Pressfield
Genre: Historical
Plot Summary:
Steven Pressfield's Gates of Fire is first and foremost the tale of company of 300 Spartan warriors who held off the the advancing Persian army (which numbered nearly 2 million) in a narrow pass in Thermopylae for nearly three days. They died to the last man rather than flee, and in so doing inspired the Greeks to drive the Persians back. But the story is really that of one man, a Greek slave named Xeones. As a young boy, Xeones' parents are killed by .... warriors, and he is forced to take to the hills to survive. His one goal is assist the Spartans as they are the enemy of the .... In time he becomes the helot, or squire, of a Greek captain and eventually finds himself assisting this captain at the Battle of Thermopylae. The novel opens with an introductory note from the royal archivist of Xerxes, the emperor of Persia. Xeones has been found amidst the hacked limbed and dead bodies following the battle, a lone survivor of the Spartan force. The archivi
st tells how Xerxes, being impressed with the valor of the Spartan force, has ordered that Xeones be given medical attention and brought before him so that he may describe in detail the Spartan warriors and their military tactics. Xeones agrees, but he weaves into the tale his own story. There is a minor sub-plot involving the relationship between Xeones and his cousin Diomache. SPOILER: The Persians are defeated the next Spring. In the chaos of the Persian retreat from Athens, Xeones relates one last tale: the method by which the 300 were chosen. Then he dies and is buried at Thermopylae with hero's honors.
Geographical Setting: Ancient Greece, specifically Sparta and Thermopylae
Time Period: 505-480 BCE
Appeal Characteristics:
This is a story about war in ancient Greece, and one of the main appeals is going to be for readers interested in a fictionalized (though historically acurate...given the limited records detailing the events surrounding the defense of the Hot Gates at Thermopylae) account of the Spartan defense of Greece against Persian forces in 480BCE. Pressfield's tale details not only the battle, but the weaponry, code of honor, and training of the Spartans. He adds authenticity to his tale via the inclusion of the ancient Greek language military terms. Yet despite the detail, Pressfield's tale does not bog down. By having his narrator switch from his recollections of the fight to the tale of his life from childhood and indocrination into the Spartan military, Pressfield is able to keep the reader interested in the story via the deft manipulation of the novel's multiple threads. Pressfield's tale is also a literary tale, and I found my familiarity with Greek etymology coming in quite
handy. What personally interested me, however, was my fascination with Greek culture. Pressfield delves not only into military life but also the religion and social customs of the Spartans, Athenians, Corinthians, Persians, and numerous other nation-states of Greece and Asia Minor. I also found myself pondering the nature of courage, why nations fight wars, and what drives men to lay their lives--major themes of Pressfield's work.
Read-alikes: Readers might first want to read more of Pressfield's historical fiction. He has three other books focusing on the ancient Greek military: The Afghan Campaign (2006) and The Virtues of War (2004), both of which focus on Alexander's campaigns. Pressfield cites Mary Renault as a major influence. Fans of Gates of Fire might try Renault's The Last of the Wine (1956) which details tensions between Sparta and Athens during the Peloponnesian War in the fifth century BCE. Renault's The Mask of Apollo (1966) addresses Greek culture and philosophy, even touching on the potentially harmful influence of Socrates and Plato. One last Renault suggestion would be her Alexander the Great trilogy which begins with Fire From Heaven (1969). Howard Fast's classic Spartacus (1950) is similar to Pressfield's tale in that it is framed within the context of those remembering him after his orchestration of a slave revolt against the Roman Empire. Another excellent suggestion would be Nicholas Nicastro's Isle of Stone (2005) which gives a less-glorified (but more realistic) depiction of Spartan totalitarianism. Another title dealing with a small group of soldiers laying their lives down in a battle against an overwhelming foe is Stephen Harrigan's Gates of the Alamo (2001). In fact, many refer to the Battle of the Alamo as the "American Thermopylae".
Red Flags: one rape, loads of cussing, and graphic descriptions of gore and violence--the first is an essential element of the plot, and the latter two are simply part of any realistic tale describing life in the military during time of war
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