Polybius' Classroom: A Historian's Approach to Practical Education

This dissertation examines Polybius' concept of the practical value of history and the realization of his principles within the historical narrative. While Polybius claims in his preface, for example, that history is the best means of education for public life, he suggests elsewhere that personal experience is in fact a more effective means of education. At the same time, he indicates that practical experience is also necessary to become a proper historian. In order to discern Polybius' beliefs on this matter, this dissertation shows how figures within Polybius' work learn and develop based either on their experiences or on their knowledge of history.