No one doubts his prowess, but was he a force for good or evil? One the one hand he unified much of Europe and Asia, bringing advanced Hellenistic culture which flourished for centuries. The Roman historian Plutarch saw him as a philosopher-king with a universal vision of a harmonious one-world. The Romans admired him greatly for setting the stage for their own Empire, which in many ways was a continuation of his. Others saw Alexander as a ruthless, blood-thirsty tyrant, so self-centered that his only goal was to feed his insatiable need for power and lust for battle.<ref> On the debate see Professor Ian Worthington "How 'Great' was Alexander?" ''The Ancient History Bulletin'' [http://www.utexas.edu/courses/citylife/readings/great1.html v.13 #2 (1999) online]</ref> | No one doubts his prowess, but was he a force for good or evil? One the one hand he unified much of Europe and Asia, bringing advanced Hellenistic culture which flourished for centuries. The Roman historian Plutarch saw him as a philosopher-king with a universal vision of a harmonious one-world. The Romans admired him greatly for setting the stage for their own Empire, which in many ways was a continuation of his. Others saw Alexander as a ruthless, blood-thirsty tyrant, so self-centered that his only goal was to feed his insatiable need for power and lust for battle.<ref> On the debate see Professor Ian Worthington "How 'Great' was Alexander?" ''The Ancient History Bulletin'' [http://www.utexas.edu/courses/citylife/readings/great1.html v.13 #2 (1999) online]</ref> |