Greek writing about Persia was respectful despite centuries of conflict

Evidence

The Greek view, as one would expect, is dominated by the long strug­ gles, beginning with the Persian invasion of Greece and culminating in the great Greek counter-attack by Alexander. This is a major theme in ancient Greek historiography; the contrast between Greek democracy and Persian autocracy also forms an important theme of Greek political writings. But despite the fact that the history was mainly one of conflict, the tone of ancient Greek writing about Persia is mostly respectful, and sometimes even compassionate, notably for ex­ ample in the play The Persians by Aeschylus, himself a veteran of the Persian wars, who shows real compassion for the defeated Persian enemy. — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 290

Categorization

• XREF: The Aeschylus compassion point resonates with the reader’s interest in dignity toward defeated enemies, echoing themes around sacrifice and respect in other sources.