So I know that it has taken far too long to get this review
over a 137 page book, but health problems have reared their head. For that I heartily apologize. I will, from this point on, once again, try
to get these blog posts coming at a much regular rate.
We finally come to our topic, a review of Hephaestion’s Journal. When I saw this on Amazon, I couldn’t resist
even though I suspected it would be horrible as it was only about $8. It turned out to be exactly what I expected,
absolutely horrible!
My first problem is that this is completely a work of
fiction written by a Hannah Saiz, yet everything on the cover, the title page,
and book leads one to believe this is an actual historic work translated by a
Valintin Numbers. There is even a story
invented on where and how these journals were found. To the uninitiated researcher, this could
create confusion and lead to the belief that this is in fact a true historic
document. I would suggest that the
fictional nature be better explained in a much more visible way.
I think the best way to review this will just be to go
through the notes that I made. This
work, as mentioned before, pretends to be Hephaestion’s personal journal with
notes sometimes appearing in the margin in Alexander’s own hand. It begins with the childhood under Aristotle’s
tutelage and tells the story of Alexander’s taming of Bucephalus, who
Hephaestion refers to repeatedly as bad-tempered and almost downright evil to
anyone but Alexander and occasionally Hephaestion himself.
Page 28-29 “Bravery does not lie in being fearless; it is
trekking over the bodies of your friends, your countrymen, even while terrified
you will share their fate. [Doing anything] to succeed.” This quote is
attributed to Alexander as he is recounting his adventures in the Battle of
Chaeronea to Hephaestion upon his return to Macedon. This refusal to bow to fear will characterize
his Alexander for the first half of the work.
Page 33 Hephaestion implies that at some point Alexander
slept at least once with Perdiccas who he refers to as a “pretty boy licentious
bastard”. The accompanying footnote says
Hephaestion presents Perdiccas as sadistic but effete.
Footnote on page 43 questions whether Alexander’s temper is
due to bipolar disorder or multiple personality disorder. It goes on to call Alexander vicious, even to
the point of killing his own men in a frenzy as evidence.
Footnote on page 44 says “Alexander’s violent tendencies
manifested early” and that Hephaestion’s non-violent tendencies are a strange
foil to Alexander’s temperament and the vast majority of his close companions.
Page 45 calls Ptolemy as “hedonistic fop”
Hephaestion refers to the rape of some women to show
Perdiccas’ sadism
Page 50 calls Alexander and Hephaestion’s comparision to
Achilles and Patroclus as indicating a
roman of dubious interpretation. It also
refers to Alexander’s consistent sacrificing to gods and heroes as evidence of
his superstitious nature.
Page 53 Footnote claims this section comes after
Granicus. Hephaestion tells of Alexander
being tortures by the voices of the dead he claims will not let him be.
Page 55 Alexander questions why Hephaestion is on the
expedition telling him that he is not a warrior in spirit.
Page 95 Hephaestion tells of Alexander intercepting letters
from Darius to his troops promising untold wealth for Alexander’s death. Hephaestion sides with Parmenion in saying
the men should not be told saying “I would not have you die for some fool to
gain a fortune.” This, the author
claims, is supposed to hint at the closeness of their relationship.
Page 97 It hints at
an argument between Hephaestion and Alexander where Hephaestion tells him he
can no longer proceed as a liberator as he now heads for Persia as you can not
liberate a people from themselves.
Page 100 This is
where the story of the Sibyl of Apollo is dealt with. “To Asia’s bountiful eath will come an
unbeliever who wears the purple cloak; a
man who is wild, despotic, fiery. As a
storm he shall flash and all Asia will sink under the evil yoke as the earth
herself drowns, glutted in blood.”
Hephaestion says the burning of Persepolis proves Alexander has become
her prediction. He says Alexander told
he he became a tyrant because the Persians would not believe him to be anything
else. “Since I could not convince them
otherwise, I will give them a tyrant they may know how to fear.”
Footnotes 146 & 147
speak of Hephaestion becoming the standard representative for all
barbarian people’s interests.
Footnote 149 says he
sees bits of Philip in Alexander and wonders is Alexander does too and and that
is what drives him in his eastward quest.
Page 108 Hephaestion
says Philotas said he knew Hephaestion would not allow Craterus and Perdiccas
to simply invent his confession.
Hephaestion says he is very uncomfortable with the whole affair and even
doubts Philotas’ guilt.
Page 110 “Had I tears
left in me, I would weep to mourn the passing of freedom, the passing of the
man I knew when I was a boy, and the love I yet bear for a memory that has been
lost to me.” Here Hephaestion refers to
the growing changes he sees in Alexander, changes he does not feel are for the
better.
Page 112 Hephaestion
wonders if the damage the death of Philotas does to Alexander will ever be
undone or even lessened.
Page 114 Alexander
meets Roxane. The author says
Hephaestion’s relationship to Alexander from this point is difficult to
determine.
Page 118 Hephaestion
tells Alexander he is not a god.
Alexander asks, “Aren’t I? Aren’t
I your god, Hephaestion?” The author
wonders if Alexander means he is Hephaestion’s personal god as in a
relationship.
Hephaestion says doubts in the Somatophylakes wounds
Alexander more than any enemy weapon he ever encounters.
Page 119-120 This
comes after the trail of Callisthenes.
Hephaestion says Alexander is now lost in his own world and will not
return to his.
Page 126 This comes
after the death of Bucephalus and the army’s refusal to cross the
Hyphasis. Hephaestion describes
Alexander as “pale as the linens he wore and far too thin...matted hair, lost
eyes…the blue which seemed so bright [had] dulled and the depths of his dark
eye [has] lessened. He looks weary. Yet this is Alexander, and he would never
admit to such weakness.”
As the story goes on, Hephaestion refers to Alexander as mad
more and more
Page 129 Following
his punctured lung, Alexander rides through his troops. Hephaestion says, “…Something inside of
Alexander has broken, and it is something I am sure I cannot fix.”
These are the notes of things which stuck out to me. It is a unique version of Alexander with a
couple of points that I admit are intriguing to explore but one which overall I
don’t think I agree with. I leave it to
you to come to your own conclusions based on what you read.
