Relying on four biographies of Alexander's contemporaries, combined with modern psychiatric and cultural studies, Cantor describes Alexander's relations with his parents, his Oedipal complex and his bisexuality. At the center of the book are Alexander's attempts to bridge the East and West, the Greek and Persian worlds, especially his using Achilles, the hero of the Trojan War, as his model. Finally, Cantor explores Alexander's view of himself in relation to the pagan gods of Greece and Egypt. The result is a psychological and cultural study of a great figure of the ancient world whose often puzzling personality had so much to do with his career.
- ISBN10 006057013X
- ISBN13 9780060570132
- Publish Date 20 November 2007 (first published 1 December 2005)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Publisher HarperCollins Publishers Inc
- Imprint HarperPerennial
- Format Paperback
- Pages 192
- Language English