Final answer:
Herodotus and Thucydides focused on explaining human actions and understanding the causes and effects of historical events. Herodotus explored the origins of tensions between Persia and Greece, while Thucydides examined the motivations behind the Peloponnesian War.
Step-by-step explanation:
The primary concerns of Greek historians Herodotus and Thucydides in their writings were to explain human actions and understand the causes and effects of historical events. Herodotus focused on exploring the deep origins of tensions between the Persian and Greek worlds in his sweeping history called 'Histories.' He traveled and researched extensively to gather information from various sources, highlighting the importance of using primary sources in historical research. Thucydides, on the other hand, meticulously followed the events of the Peloponnesian War and examined the human motivations and decisions that shaped the course of the conflict. Both historians sought to provide rational explanations for historical events and used their accounts as a means to understand the complexities of their own societies.