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Clucas, Tom. "Plutarch's Parallel Lives in The Excursion." Wordsworth Circle 45, no. 2 (2014): 126–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/twc24045892.
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Duff, Timothy E. "Models of education in Plutarch." Journal of Hellenic Studies 128 (November 2008): 1–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0075426900000033.
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Abstract:This paper examines Plutarch's treatment of education in the Parallel Lives. Beginning with a close reading of Them. 2, it identifies two distinct ways in which Plutarch exploits the education of his subjects: in the first, a subject's attitude to education is used to illustrate a character presented as basically static (a ‘static/illustrative’ model); in the second, a subject's education is looked at in order to explain his adult character, and education is assumed to affect character (a ‘developmental’ model). These two models are often associated with two different forms of discourse: anecdotal for the static/illustrative model and analytical for the developmental. The developmental model, furthermore, is closer to Plutarch's thinking in theoretical discussions of character in the Moralia; the static/illustrative model to Plutarch's treatment of character in the Lives more generally, where anecdotal treatments predominate. The coexistence of these two models is probably to be seen as the result of a tension between Plutarch's philosophical thinking and his biographical practice: those few passages in the Lives which assume a developmental model occur in contexts where either Platonic texts or the activity of philosophers are being discussed.
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Schottenius, Cullhed Sigrid, and Nijolė Juchnevičienė. "The Ethics of Motherhood in Plutarch's Parallel Lives." Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies 63, no. 4 (2023): 401–21. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10512966.
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This article aims to explore the ethics of motherhood as portrayed in Plutarch's <em>Lives </em>by conducting a critical analysis of selected passages that focus on the influence of mothers on their children. After an introductory discussion, the study is divided into two sections which focus separately on maternal relations with sons and with daughters. The article seeks to refine our understanding of the social and cultural norms surrounding motherhood as depicted in Plutarch's writings, specifically examining how the role of mothers in <em>Lives</em> shows women challenging limitations in Greek and Roman conventional gender roles. In <em>Lives</em>, exemplary mothers are not confined to the domestic sphere: they actively participate in public affairs and exercise influence over their sons who in turn emerge as distinguished political leaders. In Plutarch's view, the epitome of womanhood centers around mothering a son, with the ultimate goal being the son's commitment to the state. Within this framework, the virtues of an admirable mother are mirrored in those of an exceptional son. However, Plutarch's <em>Lives</em> also reveals a troubling dichotomy: while mothers of sons are often elevated, mothers of daughters seldom receive similar recognition. Lives as a rule lacks emotionally charged mother-daughter relationships. Rather than portraying mothers as positive influences on their daughters, he often relegates these relationships to the socially marginalized realm of hetairai. In Lives, the connections between mothers and daughters are primarily portrayed as stemming from necessity rather than mutual affection.
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Roskam, Geert. "Plutarch's demiurgic moralism in his Theseus–Romulus." Acta Classica 66, no. 1 (2023): 139–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/acl.2023.a914050.
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ABSTRACT: This article deals with the tension between two points of interest in Plutarch's Theseus–Romulus . On the one hand, the pair is part and parcel of the Parallel Lives and should thus be understood in light of their 'zetetic moralism'. On the other hand, Plutarch pays much attention to questions of historical criticism, not only in the two biographies but even in the programmatic proem. These two issues, and their mutual relation and interplay, are examined against the background of Plutarch's Platonism (particularly his reception of the Timaeus ). The task which Plutarch has set himself in this pair indeed bears comparison with that of the Demiurge who brought order to chaos. In that sense, Theseus–Romulus can be characterized as a project of 'demiurgic moralism'.
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Righetti, Pier Giorgio. "Andreas Chrambach and René Descartes: Plutarch's Parallel Lives?" ELECTROPHORESIS 28, no. 4 (2007): 505–7. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/elps.200600244.
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Radu, Gabriela. "Linguistic Inconsistencies in the Translation of Pericles' Biography: A Case-Based Approach." Analele Universității de Vest. Seria Științe Filologice 62, no. 62 (2024): 7–14. https://doi.org/10.35923/autfil.62.01.
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Plutarch, the renowned ancient Greek biographer and author of Parallel Lives, provides a detailed account of the Athenian statesman Pericles. Written in the 1st century AD, this biography examines Pericles’ life, achievements, and character within the political and cultural context of classical Greece. Among the few Romanian translations of Plutarch's work, one of the most significant is the version translated by N. I. Barbu, published between 1960 and 1971 by Editura Științifică in Bucharest. This edition includes the translated text, along with introductory and explanatory notes. While praised for its philological detail, the translation has been criticized for inaccuracies and misinterpretations of certain terms. This study identifies and analyzes these errors, offering alternative interpretations that aim to provide a more accurate understanding of the original text.
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Stadter, Philip. "Alexander Hamilton's Notes on Plutarch in His Pay Book." Review of Politics 73, no. 2 (2011): 199–217. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0034670511000040.
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AbstractAlexander Hamilton's notes to his reading of two pairs of Plutarch's Parallel Lives, Theseus-Romulus and Lycurgus-Numa, probably made in the winter of 1777–1778 at Valley Forge, reveal his early attention to the rewards of founding a new state, the natures and advantages of different political institutions, and economic, social, military, and cultural practices. They furnish a valuable testament to Hamilton's early intellectual development. He focuses on monarchy and the danger of tyranny and on the institutions by which states had limited the power of monarchs and of the popular will: the senate at Rome and the gerousia and later the ephors at Sparta. Hamilton admires Numa's use of religion to nourish civil society, while his interest in the Spartans' treatment of their helots is a testimony to his early concern about the problem of slavery.
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Schneider, Marion Theresa. "„Da setzen wir noch eins drauf!“." Millennium 16, no. 1 (2019): 93–116. http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/mill-2019-0007.
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Abstract As the interpretation of Plutarch’s prooemium to the Parallel Lives of Sertorius and Eumenes shows, an author’s capacity of irony often lies in the eyes of the beholder: While most historians take for granted that this passage is meant to make fun of Plutarch’s contemporaries for drawing ridiculous conclusions from historical parallels like namesakes or similar external attributes, most translators fail to see its humorous undertone. It becomes clear, though, that it is possible to establish objective criteria for ironic speech in Plutarch that can be found in the prooemium as well, if one takes a closer look at ironic strategies in his polemical or colloquial writings. One of these is the ironic use of allusive names for dialogue partners or even the invention of characters bearing telling historical names. With this special ironic technique in mind one might even reconsider the authenticity of (Ps.‐)Plutarch’s Parallela Minora commonly termed spurious because of its cunning invention of fictitious sources on similar principles as those of the ironic Plutarch.
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Freitas, Vanderley Nascimento. "AS PAIXÕES EM PLUTARCO: O PAPEL DO SILÊNCIO NA CURA DA TAGARELICE." Sapere Aude 10, no. 19 (2019): 73–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.5752/p.2177-6342.2019v10n19p73-92.
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Plutarco de Queroneia (45-125), maior expoente do médio platonismo, é autor de uma vasta obra, cujos textos conservados foram divididos em dois grandes grupos, as Vidas Paralelas (Bioi Paralleloi) e as Obras Morais (Moralia). Interessa-nos aqui examinar os vários âmbitos em que é possível reconhecer uma reflexão acerca das paixões em Plutarco, inserindo-a na busca pela boa vida preconizado pelo filósofo, a fim de evidenciar os caminhos para a cura de um páthos em particular: a tagarelice. No presente artigo, examinaremos mais de perto quatro tratados do corpus de Plutarco, a saber, Sobre a Tagarelice, Como Ouvir, O Banquete dos Sete Sábios e Das Doenças da Alma e do Corpo: quais as mais nefastas? Entrevendo o horizonte do bem viver, buscaremos mostrar como o filósofo faz com que o silêncio emerja como um ingrediente particular ao se pensar no tratamento de uma alma flagelada pelas paixões. Buscaremos, ainda, trazer à luz as fontes do pensamento antigo nas quais Plutarco se inspira, sobretudo no que diz respeito ao tema relacionado às paixões.ABSTRACTPlutarch of Chaeronea (45-125), the highest exponent of Middle Platonism, is the author of a vast work, whose conserved texts were divided into two great groups, the Parallel lives (Bioi Paralleloi) and the Moral works (Moralia). We are here interested in examine the various fields in which it is possible to recognize a reflection upon the passions in Plutarch, inserting it in the search for the good life recommended by the philosopher, in order to highlight the ways for the healing of a particular pathos: the chatter. In the present article, we will look over more closely four treatises on Plutarch's corpus, namely, On talkativeness, On listening to lectures, Dinner of the seven wise men and Whether the affections of the soul are worse than those of the body. Glimpsing the horizon of well-being, we shall try to show how the philosopher makes silence emerge as a particular ingredient in thinking about the treatment of a soul plagued by passions. We will also try to bring to light the sources of ancient thought in which Plutarch inspired himself, above all regarding the theme related to the passions.KEYWORDS: Plutarch. Passions. Ethic. Silence. Soul.
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Promisel, Michael E. "How Lives Form Leaders: Plutarch’s Tripartite Theory of Leadership Education." Polis: The Journal for Ancient Greek and Roman Political Thought 38, no. 2 (2021): 277–302. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/20512996-12340326.
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Abstract Plutarch’s Parallel Lives was once considered a preeminent source of ethical and leadership instruction. But despite generations turning to the Lives for leadership education, we lack clarity concerning how the Lives cultivate leadership. In fact, Plutarch offers the key to this puzzle in a tripartite theory of leadership education evident throughout his corpus. Leaders should be educated through: 1) philosophical instruction, 2) experience in public life, or 3) literary synthesis – and, ideally, some combination of all three. Plutarch’s Lives, this article contends, exemplifies the third form of education, literary synthesis, which exhibits the influence of philosophical principle and moral character on political conduct. Understanding the Lives as a model of literary leadership education reveals the conditions for written works to cultivate virtuous leaders – the closing consideration of this article.
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Ładoń, Tomasz. "Obraz wojny domowej z lat 83-82 przed Chr. w Żywocie Lucjusza Korneliusza Sulli Plutarcha z Cheronei." Argument: Biannual Philosophical Journal 7, no. 2 (2017): 247–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.24917/20841043.7.2.4.
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An image of the civil war of the years 83–82 BCE in Plutarch’s the Life of Sulla The author of this article is interested in how Plutarch of Chaeronea created the picture of the Sullan War in Parallel lives, especially in the Life of Lucius Cornelius Sulla. Firstly, the author notes that in presenting the civil war Plutarch was dependent on the Memoirs of Sulla. But not only. There are fragments from other source too, probably the same that Appian of Alexandria used. Therefore the Author wonders to what extend Plutarch was tendentious in presenting the Sullan War. Secondly, the author shows which moments of the Sullan War were of especial interest to Plutarch of Chaeronea and tries to answer why some of the events (for example the negotiations between Sulla and Scipio) Plutarch was to described so briefly. Finally, the author indicates why this report of Plutarch of Chaeronea remains a very important source for any historian of the civil wars in Rome.
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Reed, Gillian. "Grief in Plutarch's Paralell Lives." Chronos: The Syracuse University Undergraduate History Journal 15, no. 1 (2024): 7–14. http://dx.doi.org/10.14305/jn.29975174.15.1.1.
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Osek, Ewa. "Starzec w polityce. Zmienne poglądy Plutarcha z Cheronei." Vox Patrum 56 (December 15, 2011): 133–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.31743/vp.4212.
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Plutarch of Chaeronea (ca. 45-122/125) changed his attitude to on old age in the successive stages of his life and literary production. In the period between AD 85 and 95 the middle-aged author inclined to the Stoic theory on old age. According to the Stoic doctrine his Table talks (Symposiacs) show an old age of man as a heatless and moistures state causing the physical and mental degeneracy. In the next phase – the time of working on the Parallel Lives (AD 96-117) Plutarch hesitated between the pessimistic Stoic view and the neo-Stoic conception of the eugeria („the beautiful ageing”), whose embodiment and ideal was Cato the Elder. The ultimate Plutarch’s position is contained in his last work entitled Whether an old man should engage in public affairs. This treatise on old age, being the only such a work extant in Greek language, was written in AD 119/120, when Hadrian appointed over seventy-year-old Plutarch to a governor of Greece. The author argues now that an old statesman is much better than a young one and that a politician doesn’t have to finish his public career because of his old age. The Plutarch’s sources are not Peripatetic, as most of the scholars suppose, but Epicurean and perhaps also Middle Platonic. The thesis of this article is that the philosopher of Chaeronea always oscillated between Stoicism and Epicureanism in his approach to old age.
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Ruta, Alessio. "NARRATIVE AND ETHICAL REFLECTION IN PLUTARCH - (C.S.) Chrysanthou Plutarch's Parallel Lives – Narrative Technique and Moral Judgement. (Trends in Classics Supplementary Volume 57.) Pp. x + 228. Berlin and Boston: De Gruyter, 2018. Cased, £72.50, €79.95, US$91.99. ISBN: 978-3-11-057298-8." Classical Review 70, no. 1 (2019): 60–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0009840x19001550.
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Telminov, Vyacheslav G. "Plut. Gai. Gracch. and Dionys. Hal. AR. VIII: a new light on the grain dole and the participation of socii in lex agraria sempronia, the issue revisited." Schole Ancient philosophy and the classical tradition 19, no. 1 (2025): 170–84. https://doi.org/10.25205/1995-4328-2025-19-1-170-184.
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This article examines the parallels between the reforms of Gaius Gracchus and the actions of Spurius Cassius as described by Dionysius of Halicarnassus, shedding new light on the interpretation of grain dole, land allotments and the role of Italian allies in the Lex Agraria Sempronia. The narrative of Spurius Cassius appears heavily anachronistic, reflecting the conflicts of Gaius Gracchus’s era rather than those of the early Republic. Through a detailed analysis of the biographical structure of Plutarch’s parallel lives of Gaius Gracchus and Cleomenes, the article explores the moral and political frameworks imposed by these authors. These comparisons reveal indirect evidence suggesting that Gaius Gracchus may have included Italian allies in his land reforms, a hypothesis that contrasts with traditional interpretations of his legislation. By comparing literary and rhetorical strategies, the study highlights how Dionysius and Plutarch utilized historical figures to reflect broader political and moral debates. Upon examining these texts, the study contributes to a re-evaluation of Gracchus’s agrarian reforms and their implications for Roman-Italian relations during the late Republic.
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Lucchesi, Michele. "Gylippus in Plutarch’s Parallel Lives: Intratextuality and Readers." Ploutarchos 13 (November 2, 2016): 3–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.14195/0258-655x_13_1.
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Plutarch’s portrayal of Gylippus is consistent both in the Moralia and in the Parallel Lives. In particular, Gylippus’ main traits clearly recall the Spartans’ virtues and vices described in the five Spartan Lives. Furthermore, the presence of Gylippus as a secondary character in the Life of Pericles and in the Life of Nicias creates a strong link between these biographies and the Lives of Lycurgus and Lysander. Different types of readers can variously actualise such intratextual connections. We can infer that the Parallel Lives require attentive readers willing to engage actively in the reading process and to interpret the narrative fruitfully, following the author’s
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Stadter, Philip A. "Barbarian Comparisons." Ploutarchos 12 (November 3, 2015): 65–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.14195/0258-655x_12_5.
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When comparing two heroes, who both fought barbarians, Plutarch does not draw parallels between Greek and Roman campaigns. Instead, in the four pairs of Parallel Lives studied here (Pyrrh.-Mar., Them.-Cam., Cim.-Luc., Alex.-Caes.), Plutarch broadens the significance of barbarian contact, allowing the barbarian enemy, the external Other, to draw attention to Hellenic traits of freedom, culture, and prudence in his heroes and in their cities, both Greek and Roman. Equally important, this Other serves to uncover traces of the barbarian in those same heroes and cities.
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Titchener, Frances. "Plutarch’s Lively Dinner Tables." Ploutarchos 19 (December 28, 2022): 83–102. http://dx.doi.org/10.14195/0258-655x_19_4.
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This paper will look at banquets in the context of non-food related events like assassinations, making an impression, and true character reveals, heavily illustrated by citations from twenty-three different Parallel Lives, with a final section on food-related events focusing on Spartan black broth (μέλας ζωμός) as a characterizing device.
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Pérez-Jiménez, Aurelio. "Plutarch’s Parallel Lives and the Greek Christian Fathers of the 2nd Century, with special attention to Clement of Alexandria." Ploutarchos 20 (December 28, 2023): 27–72. http://dx.doi.org/10.14195/0258-655x_20_2.
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It is well known the Plutarch’s influence on the Christian thought of the imperial era, especially in authors such as Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Eusebius of Caesarea, the three Capadocian Fathers, John Chrysosthomos, Theodoretus, Cyrillus of Alexandria, or Synesius of Cyrene, who not only cite (with the exception of Clement) him, but even, without explicit citing, are directly inspired by some Plutarch’s theological and ethical treatises. In this sense, the use of the Moralia by Greek Christian Apologists and other Fathers of the Church has received sufficient attention from modern bibliography, especially in the last decades of the 20th Century and so far in the 21st Century. Less researched has been, however, the imprint left by the Parallel Lives on the Greek Christian authors of the first five centuries of our Age. My article will focus on this aspect of Plutarch’s reception, although restricted to the 2nd century AD. The first Section will provide an overview (based on modern literature about this topic and on the reading of Christian texts) of the importance of references in Ancient Christian Literature to the characters of Plutarch’s Lives or to specific passages in them. In the first and second Sections I will focus on the possible references to this Plutarch’s work in the 2nd Century apologists, Tatian, Athenagoras and Theophilus (first Section), and in Clement of Alexandria (second Section).
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Visonà, Lucia. "Frienemies de l’Antiquité: Aristide et Thémistocle vus par Plutarque." Electrum 29 (October 21, 2022): 147–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.4467/20800909el.22.010.15780.
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In the Parallel Lives, Aristides and Themistocles are two antithetical characters. This opposition, already present in Herodotus’work and common to the literary tradition of the Persian wars, is particularly emphasized by Plutarch who shapes two characters endowed with opposing character traits who adopt completely different behaviors towards friends or wealth. This profound contrast is intended to highlight the collaboration between the two Athenians, ready to put aside personal differences to devote themselves together to the war against the Persians. The episode of reconciliation is in fact located, unlike other sources (Aristotle, Diodorus), before the battle of Salamis. However, Aristides and Themistocles do not limit themselves to settling their differences : they also take on the role of mediators during the war in order to address the disagreements between Athens and the other Greek cities and avoid hindering the common struggle against the barbarians. To do this, Plutarch adapts some passages of Herodotus (directly or by choosing sources that made such changes) to insert the protagonists of the Lives and create a climate of tension that they can happily resolve. His authorial choices appear consistent with the criticisms against Herodotus in De Herodoti Malignitate. The reflection about the Persian wars in Plutarch’s corpus seems therefore to be animated by a coherent vision, born from the tradition elaborated by the Attic orators in the fourth century : the conflict is seen as a privileged moment of the union between the Greeks, capable of overcoming the almost endemic rivalries that oppose them in view of the common good.
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Mahroof, M. M. M. "THE COOKS’ TOUR SYNDROME." American Journal of Islam and Society 14, no. 1 (1997): 70–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.35632/ajis.v14i1.2269.
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The western world, from ancient times, say from Herodotus onward,was and is interested in how others live. Herodotus’s Histories wasunabashedly curious about the lives of the Egyptians, Persians, and otherraces that inhabited the immediate or remote environs of ancient Greece.The then-Gmk world, while conscious of the intellectual and socialpower of the Greeks vis-a-vis other races, did not descend to the peddlingof romantic made-up stories of other peoples; this culminated in laterEuropean tales, the keystone of which was Mandeville’s Travels.The Greeks and the later Romans, while maintaining the essentialsuperiority of Greeks and Romans, nonetheless were inclined to the viewthat there were social and economic gradations among the Greeks andthe Romans themselves. The fruits of Graeco-Roman civilization werereserved for those who were “gently” born. The decision makers, as wellas most philosophers (the ultimate thinkers of those times), came fromsocially privileged groups. There were a few exceptions: The philosopherSolon was held to be an oil-seller, a fact that Plutarch never fails tobelabor in his Parallel Lives. In fact, Plutarch’s work reads like anancient Almanach de Gotha or Burke‘s Peerage.The Romans, who, unlike the ancient Greeks, conquered a large partof Euro-Asia, were careful to limit citizenship to specific foreigners.Among native-born Romans, aristocratic birth was the key to social and ...
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Gómez, Pilar. "Signs of identity in the Plutarchian Lives of Aristides, Themistocles and Cimon." Ploutarchos 19 (December 28, 2022): 3–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.14195/0258-655x_19_1.
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This paper deals with three pairs of Plutarch’s Parallel Lives, whose Greek protagonists played a central role in the Hellenic triumph over the Persians: Aristides, Themistocles, and Cimon. We will analyze the Lives of these three Greeks who contributed decisively to cementing the Athenian identity, in relation to their lineage, education, character, virtues and death, in contrast to the Romans placed in parallel with them (Marcus Cato, Camillus and Lucullus), in order to observe if in these aspects there are differentiating traits between Greeks and Romans.
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Kosek, Wojciech. "Christ's "anamnesis" as the sacrifice offered before His fight against the devil." Polish Journal of Biblical Research 16, No. 2 (32) (2017): 147–90. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4033147.
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Based on the Bible and numerous Greek writers’ works, one will prove that the ancient world nations, both Jewish and Gentile, had many identical cultural practices relating to war times. The custom to offer “the anamnesis-sacrifice” before battle in order to ensure their god’s memory of the donor during the struggle makes it possible to understand Jesus’ command “do this in memory of Me” (1 Cor 11:24-25), where “this” means “the offering of anamnesis-sacrifice made by Jesus as the Man at His Last Supper, i.e., before His fight against the devil.” In the footnotes of this article, there are two publications by Wojciech Kosek. They are on the Internet: 1. W. Kosek, <em>Nakaz głoszenia śmierci Pana ‘aż przyjdzie’ (1 Kor 11,26) w świetle porównawczej analizy gramatycznej</em>, [in:] W. Chrostowski (ed.), Jak śmierć potężna jest miłość. Księga pamiątkowa ku czci Księdza Profesora Juliana Warzechy SAC (1944-2009) (Ad Multos Annos 13; Ząbki 2009) 224-240: https://www.adoracja.bielsko.opoka.org.pl/biblistyka/1Kor11_26_dr_Wojciech_Kosek.html 2. W. Kosek, <em>Pierwotny ryt Paschy w świetle schematu literackiego Księgi Wyjścia 1-18 </em>(Rozprawy doktorskie – Papieska Akademia Teologiczna w Krakowie. Wydział Teologiczny), Kraków 2008: https://www.adoracja.bielsko.opoka.org.pl/Kosek_mainWeb_UK.html - in English
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Tanga, Fabio. "A Note on Plu. Cim. 18.2-5: Cimon’s Dream and Astyphilus of Poseidonia." Ploutarchos 21 (December 28, 2024): 133–50. https://doi.org/10.14195/0258-655x_21_5.
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The paper examinates Plutarch’s Life of Cimon 18.2-5, passage in which Astyphilus from Poseidonia interprets a dream made by Cimon and predicts the death of the Athenian statesman. A literary analysis of Plutarch’s anecdote, compared with other similar dreams from the Parallel Lives and considered with some deductions on Astyphilus and the activity of the ancient dream interpreters, if related with some evidences from the history and archaeology of Poseidonia and with the testimony of Hdt. 1.165-167, suggests to postulate the existence of a notable tradition of oneiromancy and oracular exegesis from the ancient city of Poseidonia.
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Roskam, Geert. "Another look at the crossreferences in Plutarch’s Parallel lives ." Rivista di Filologia e di Istruzione Classica 152, no. 2 (2024): 310–36. https://doi.org/10.1484/j.rfic.5.145356.
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Zabudskaya, Yana. "The “Greek” and the “Roman” in “Parallel Lives” by Plutarch." Balcanica, no. 15 (2019): 26–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.31168/2618-8597.2019.15.4.
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Serreqi Jurić, Teuta, and Tihana Jurišić. "Refleksija starogrčke biografije u spisu Vita Basilii Konstantina VII. Porfirogeneta." Fluminensia 35, no. 1 (2023): 265–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.31820/f.35.1.12.
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The Vita Basilii, compiled by Byzantine emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (913–959) in honour of his grandfather Basil I (867–886), appears as the first laudatory biography in Byzantine literature glorifying the emperor’s life and deeds (βασιλικὸς λόγος). Previous research demonstrates that, in compiling the work, Porphyrogenitus used two types of ancient Greek biography, Isocrates’ encomium Euagoras and Plutarch’s Parallel Lives, as models. The research in this paper is based on the analysis and comparison of the structure and content of Plutarch’s Alexander, depicting the life and works of Alexander the Great, Isocrates’ Euagoras, dedicated to the Cypriot ruler of Salamis, and Porphyrogenitus’ account of Basil's life according to topoi specific to a basilikos logos (prologue, homeland, origin, birth, physical appearance, upbringing, character traits, achievements in war and peace, fortune, comparison to the previous reign, epilogue and concluding prayer). The aim is to determine in what way Plutarch’s and Isocrates’ models of biography influenced the Vita Bas., i.e., to what extent Porphyrogenitus imitated ancient templates and in which segments of the work he brings his own innovations.
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CİNEMRE, İlhami Tekin. "THE STORIES OF LIVES: BIOGRAPHICAL TRADITION FROM “ROMAN” TO ARMENIAN LITERATURE." Cihannüma Tarih ve Coğrafya Araştırmaları Dergisi 9, no. 2 (2023): 1–17. http://dx.doi.org/10.30517/cihannuma.1412247.
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The first touchstone that comes to mind when considering the tradition of biographical writing in ancient literature is Plutarch’s Parallel Lives, although he was not the earliest example of this method. Much later, came the Vita Constantini, a panegyric written by the church historian Eusebius in honour of the Emperor Constantine, and Athanasius’ Vita Antonii. Moreover, further east, a patristic and encomiastic Armenian biographical tradition exists, albeit partly obscured in Armenian literature and overlooked by ancient authors. Surprisingly, existing literature has not dedicated sufficient attention to the transmission of literature between the East and West, despite the likelihood that the first written Armenian text was a biography. Therefore, this study will discuss the extent to which Armenian literature was influenced by its Roman predecessors in the biographical tradition, especially those who wrote in Greek, and how this tradition was shaped in Armenian literature.
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Alcalde-Martín, Carlos. "Political Vocation and Oratory in the Lives of Phocion, Cato Minor and Cato Maior." Ploutarchos 15 (October 30, 2018): 3–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.14195/0258-655x_15_1.
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The pair of biographies Phocion – Cato the Younger begins by establishing, in the Life of Phocion, a comparison between the two protagonists that is illustrated and developed in the internal comparison that Plutarch implicitly traces throughout the two Lives. This can be seen, among other aspects, in their political vocation and in the description of their character and oratory. There is also a close parallel between these biographies and that of Cato the Elder, reinforced by the comparison of their protagonists with Socrates, which evokes the ideal image of the politician inspired by philosophy.
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Christoforou, Panayiotis. "C.S. CHRYSANTHOU Plutarch’s Parallel Lives: Narrative Technique and Moral Judgement. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2018. Pp. 228. £72.50. 9783110572988." Journal of Hellenic Studies 140 (November 2020): 282. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0075426920000531.
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Nolan, Edward. "Interpreters and Linguistic Difference in Herodotus and Beyond." Histos 19 (June 18, 2025): 21–64. https://doi.org/10.29173/histos709.
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Herodotus sometimes breaks the general rule in Greek literature by which the whole world converses in effortless Greek. The most notable way he does this is through the presence of linguistic interpreters or other multilingual intermediaries. Less remarked on but similar in effect are situations in which the historian explicitly notes what language (Greek or otherwise) a conversation took place in and episodes in which language barriers prevent communication altogether. This paper examines how such acknowledgements of linguistic difference serve as a distancing device to highlight other kinds of differences between characters, including the political distance between kings and royal subjects, cultural differences between Greeks and others, and, during Croesus’ encounter with Cyrus on the pyre, philosophical differences between the wise and the foolish. It considers examples from Herodotus’ Histories alongside similar episodes in Xenophon’s Anabasis, with a coda on the reuse and adaptation of the device in Plutarch’s Parallel Lives.
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Medica, Karmen. "Plutarch: Parallel Lives: Cimon and Lucullus, Nicias and Crassus, translation, commentary, interpretive study and edited by Maja Sunčič." Monitor ISH 17, no. 2 (2015): 207–10. http://dx.doi.org/10.33700/1580-7118.17.2.207-210(2015).
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SANTOS, DOMINIQUE VIEIRA COELHO DOS, and ANA LETÍCIA CONTADOR. "Olímpia de Épiro: uma leitura dos Comportamentos Barbarescos da Rainha Macedônica na obra Vidas paralelas de Plutarco * Olympia of Epirus: reading the Aarbarian Acting of the Macedonian Queen in the work Parallel lives of Plutarch." História e Cultura 2, no. 3 (2014): 172. http://dx.doi.org/10.18223/hiscult.v2i3.1102.
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<p><strong>Resumo:</strong> O objetivo deste artigo é analisar o papel que Olímpia de Épiro – mãe de Alexandre, o Grande – desempenha na narrativa plutarqueana dentro da obra <em>Vidas Paralelas</em>. Tal empreendimento pode nos auxiliar a compreender, por exemplo, como Plutarco aborda a dicotomia grego/bárbaro, pois quando descreve a rainha macedônica ele a caracteriza como detentora de uma natureza rude e comportamentos religiosos desviantes, sendo tão barbaresca quanto às mulheres Edômas e Trácias. <strong></strong></p><p><strong>Palavras-chave:</strong> Plutarco – Alexandre – Religião – Barbárie – Olímpia de Épiro.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Abstract:</strong> This paper aim is to analyze the role that Olympia of Epirus - mother of Alexander the Great - plays in the Plutarchian narrative in the work <em>Parallel Lives</em>. Such an effort can help us to understand, for example, how Plutarch discusses the dichotomy greek/barbarian, as when he describes the Macedonian Queen he characterizes her as having a tough nature and deviant religious behavior, being as barbaric as Edonian and Thracian women.</p><p><strong>Keywords: </strong>Plutarch – Alexander – Religion – Barbarism – Olympia of Epirus.</p>
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Seregina, A. Yu. "Thomas North’s travel to Rome (1555): From itinerary to traveler’s memoir." Shagi / Steps 9, no. 1 (2023): 185–205. http://dx.doi.org/10.22394/2412-9410-2023-9-1-185-205.
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The article analyses the text of the “Journey of the English Ambassadors to Rome in 1555” — a travel memoir compiled in the 1560s on the basis of a diary kept by Thomas North (1535 — c.1601), then a page in the household of ambassador Thomas Thirlby, Bishop of Ely. Later in life, Thomas North became famous as the author of the first, often reprinted English translation of Plutarch’s “Parallel Lives” (1579), and his travelogue remains the most important of the extant documents related to the last English embassy to Rome (1555), which temporarily restored the country’s relationship with the Holy See. However, the “Journey” has been poorly studied and has never been looked at in the context of travel literature. Detailed analysis of North’s text shows that although the author followed the genre of medieval itineraries his work differs in focus and intent from other travel diaries and memoirs produced by English travelers and diplomats of the mid-16th century. North was not much interested in the political side of his journey, or even in the Roman antiquities. His text presents a series of the author’s impressions of what he saw in France, Italy, Germany and the Netherlands, of new palaces, fortresses, instruments, mechanisms and “wonders”: objects, animals and birds, and social practices. The unique combination of itinerary, diary and memoir in North’s “Journey” demonstrates how 16th century Europeans manipulated literary genres in search of a form suitable for describing their travel experiences and tastes.
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Curnis, Michele. "Chrysanthos S. Chrysanthou, Plutarch’s Parallel Lives . Narrative Technique and Moral Judgement, De Gruyter (“Trends in Classics - Supplementary Volumes” 57), Berlin-Boston 2018, pp. 228, ISBN 978-31-105-7298-8." ΠΗΓΗ/FONS 5, no. 1 (2020): 185. http://dx.doi.org/10.20318/fons.2020.5819.
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Pinheiro, Joaquim. "Recensão a JACOBS, Susan G., Plutarch’s Pragmatic Biographies: Lessons for Statesmen and Generals in the Parallel Lives, Leiden & Boston, Brill Academic, 2018, 471 pp. ISBN: 978-90-04-27660-4." Humanitas, no. 76 (December 10, 2020): 185–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.14195/2183-1718_76_13.
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Pinheiro, Joaquim. "Ch. S. Chrysanthou, Plutarch’s Parallel Lives: Narrative Technique and Moral Judgement. Trends in Classics, Supplementary volumes, vol. 57, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin 2018, x+228 p. [ISBN 978-3-11- 057298-8]." Ploutarchos 16 (October 29, 2019): 99–102. http://dx.doi.org/10.14195/0258-655x_16_12.
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Pashkurov, A. "The myth of Russia in “Dialogues of the Dead” by Mikhail Muraviev." Philology and Culture, no. 2 (June 25, 2024): 170–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.26907/2782-4756-2024-76-2-170-175.
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This article focuses on the processes of development and change in the philosophical and rhetorical genre of “Dialogues...” in Russian literature of the last quarter of the 18th century. A given phenomenon goes back as far as the heritage of ancient thinkers; for instance, “Parallel Lives” by Plutarch was relevant to Russian writers of the years 1700-1800. Initially, under new conditions, the national writers were mostly interested in this genre by reason of the general problems of knowledge distribution as a metaphysical beginning of existence (A. Belobotsky, V. Tatitshev). By the last quarter of the 18th century, a key aspect of consideration had been shifted to the issues of a new personal education and the state and moral doctrine of Russia. Mikhail Muraviev (1757 - 1807) was a famous Russian literary man and enlightener, the founder of sentimentalism and pre-romanticism in national literary culture, a philosopher and historian. In the years 1780-1790, on a personal invitation of Empress Catherine the Second, he taught moral philosophy and history to her grandchildren – tsesareviches Alexander and Constantine. It was the period when “Dialogues of the Dead” were contemplated as part of the writer’s teaching activities. M. Muraviev’s central goal was to show two key ideas: the development of Russia in Modern Period and the development of a new educated person.Using a well-known allusion technique, the writer chose symbolic figures of the world history and culture, transferred two contrasting characters to one period of time and turned them into interlocutors, holding a discussion. Moreover, Russian public figures of different epochs could meet both the leaders of the world historical and cultural process and each other. So far, “Dialogues of the Dead” by M. Muraviev have been studied fragmentarily in scientific research. The researchers’ attention has been focused mainly on the range of sources used by the writer, as well as on some language features, style and general moral ideas of the outstanding Russian enlightener. According to our hypothesis, the original “myth of Russia” is in the centre of this work. The distinguishing features of this phenomenon are: firstly, the synthesis of various spheres of socio-cultural life, from policy to literary culture; secondly, a clear correlation of “the state glory” phenomenon with conceptions of the internal moral creed both of the ruler of the state and every man in the country.
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Lejman, Beata. "O niebezpiecznych związkach sztuki i polityki na przykładzie „żywotów równoległych” Michaela Willmanna i Philipa Bentuma." Porta Aurea, no. 19 (December 22, 2020): 114–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.26881/porta.2020.19.05.
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Michael Lucas Leopold Willmann (1630–1706) was born in Königsberg (now Kalinin grad in Russia), where his first teacher was Christian Peter, a well -off guild painter. After years of journeys of apprenticeship and learning in the Netherlands, the young artist returned to his homeland, after Matthias Czwiczek’s death in 1654 probably hoping for the position of the painter at the court of Great Elector Frederick William (1620–1688).What served to draw the ruler’s attention to himself was probably the lost painting, described by Johann Joachim von Sandrart as follows: ‘the Vulcan with his cyclops makes armour for Mars and a shield and a spear for Minerva’. The failure of these efforts led the future ‘Apelles’ to emigrate to Silesia, where he created a family painting workshop in Lubiąż (Leubus), and following the conversion from Calvinism to Catholicism, he became a Cistercian painter, creating famous works of art in religious or secular centres of Crown Bohemia. What connects him to Prussia is another painting of great importance in his career, the little -known ‘Apotheosis of the Great Elector as a Guardian of Arts’ from 1682.
 The successor to Great Elector Frederick III (1657–1713) was crowned in 1701 as the ‘king of Prussia’. The ceremony required an appropriate artistic setting, which prompted many artists to flock to Königsberg, including a Dutchman from Leiden, the painter Justus Bentum, a pupil of Gottfred Schalken, who reached the capital of the new kingdom together with his son Philip Christian. After studying from his father, Philip Christian Bentum (ok. 1690 – po 1757) followed in the footsteps of the famous Willmann, and went on a journey, from which he never returned to Prussia. He went first to imperial Prague, where he collaborated with Peter Brandl and converted to Catholicism, following which he travelled to Silesia. After 1731, he took part in the artistic projects of Bishop Franz Ludwig von Pfalz–Neuburg of Wrocław (Breslau) and Abbot Constantin Beyer, who completed the project begun by Freiberger and Willmann: the extension and decoration of the Cistercian Abbey in Lubiąż. It was there that he made the largest in Europe canvas -painted oil plafond of the Prince’s Hall and completed his opus magnum: covering all the library walls and vaults with painting. Those pro -Habsburg works were finished two years before the death of Emperor Charles VI (1685–1740) and the military invasion of Silesia by Frederick II Hohenzollern (1712–1786), great - -grandson of the Great Elector.
 The fate of the artists mentioned in the title was intertwined with Königsberg and Lubiąż. Both converts set off for the professional maturity from the Prussian capital via Prague to Silesia. They can be compared by the Dutch sources of their art and a compilation method of creating images using print ‘prototypes’. Their inner discrepancy can be seen in the choice of these patterns, as they followed both the Catholic Rubens and the Protestant Rembrandt Van Rijn. They were connected with the provinces playing a key role in Central -European politics: here the Hohenzollerns competed for power in Central Europe with the Habsburgs. They were witnessesto the game for winning Silesia, and even took part in it by creating propagandistic art. Both of them worked for Bishop Franz Ludwig von Pfalz–Neuburg (1664–1732), associated with the Emperor, a kind of the capo di tutti capi of the Counter -Reformation in Silesia. Bentum eagerly imitated selected compositions of his predecessor and master from Lubiąż, and I think he even tried to surpass him in scale and precision. The artistic competition with Willman is visible in the paintings of the library in Lubiąż. There, he presented an Allegory of Painting, which shows the image of Willmann carried by an angel, while the inscription praising the qualities of his character calls him ‘Apelles’.
 The work of both painters, who took their first steps in the profession as Protestants in Königsberg, but became famous through their work for Catholics, provides an interesting material for the analysis of the general topic of artistic careers on the periphery of Europe, the relationship between the centres and the periphery, as well as for two stages of re -Catholisation in Silesia treated as an instrument of power. It was usually pointed out how much separates the two painters, but no one has ever tried to show what unites them. The comparison of the sources, motifs, and outstanding achievements of both of them, especially in Lubiąż, gives a more complete picture of their activity deeply immersed in the politics of their times. This picture is not as unambiguous as it has been so far, highlighting the political and propaganda aspects of their career spreading out between the coastal Protestant north and the Catholic south. The drama of their lives took place in Silesia, where the multiple dividing lines of Europe intersected.
 The idea of narrating the parallel fates of two artists with great Politics in the background (as in he case of Plutarch’s ‘Parallel Lives’) came to my mind years ago when I curated the Exhibition ‘Willmann – Drawings. A Baroque Artist’s Workshop’ (2001, National Museum in Wrocław, in cooperation with Salzburg and Stuttgart). The present paper was to be included in the volume accompanying that project initiated by Andrzej Kozieł (Willmann and Others. Painting, Drawing and Graphic Arts in Silesia and Neighbouring Countries in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, ed. A. Kozieł, B. Lejman, Wrocław 2002), but I withdrew from its publication. I am hereby publishing it, thanking Małgorzata Omilanowska for her presence at the opening of this first great exhibition of mine in 2001, as well for the excellent cooperation with my Austrian, Czech, German, and Polish colleagues. This text, referring to the topic of our discussions at the time – as on the event of the above -mentioned exhibition I spoke at a press conference in Stuttgart’s Staatsgalerie, where the curator of the German exhibition was Hans Martin Kaulbach, exactly two days after the attack on WTC.
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"V. History as Matter for Philosophy: The Parallel Lives." New Surveys in the Classics 47 (2017): 89–112. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s053324512100016x.
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Reading Plutarch's Parallel Lives is a fascinating encounter with the history of the ancient world. It includes witnessing the foundation of Athens (Thes. 24.1–3) and Rome (Rom. 11.1–12.1); participating in the battles of Salamis (Arist. 9.1–4; Them. 13.1–15.4), Pharsalus (Pomp. 69.1–72.6; Caes. 42.1–45.8), Philippi (Brut. 49.1–10), and Actium (Ant. 65.1–66.8); marvelling at Alexander sitting on Darius’ throne (Alex. 37.7); being dazzled by the wonderful buildings on the Acropolis (Per. 12.1–13.14); watching in dismay as Caesar is killed with twenty-three dagger blows (Caes. 66.1–14); sharing Pyrrhus’ desperation with one more victory (Pyrrh. 21.14); and standing aghast at the rape of the Sabines (Rom. 14.1–15.7), the tragic fate of Spartacus (Crass. 8.1–11.10), and Hannibal's triumph at Cannae (Fab. 16.1–9). It is a rendezvous with so many distinguished figures of Greek and Roman history: the protagonists and antagonists of the Lives, of course, but also the many less-known figures behind the scene, like Mnesiphilus, the teacher of Themistocles (Them. 2.6–7) or Damon, the brains behind the young Pericles (Per. 4.1–4). The decisive moments of history, such as Caesar's famous alea iacta est before his crossing of the Rubicon (Caes. 32.8; Pomp. 60.4), or his veni vidi vici at Zela (Caes. 50.3), are juxtaposed with ‘petite histoire’ with all its juicy anecdotes: Demetrius’ liaison with Lamia (Demetr. 27.1–14), Pericles’ relationship with Aspasia (Per. 24.2–12), Pompey's fondness for Flora (Pomp. 2.5–8), and, of course, Antony's notorious affair with Cleopatra (Ant. 36.1–7; 53.5–12; 71.4–86.9).
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Deriu, Morena. "Fire metaphors in Plutarch’s Late Republican Lives." Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies, December 4, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1093/bics/qbae034.
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ABSTRACT In this article, I will investigate how Plutarch uses fire metaphors to conceptualize physical and psychological realities mainly related to the exercise of power in the Lives belonging to the Late Republic and their parallel Lives. I will show how Plutarch uses fire as a source domain to represent the target domains of war and conflict, anger, ambition, and warlike ardour, and erotic desire. I will point out the similarities and differences in such uses to illustrate how these target domains do or do not overlap. My aim is to show how fire metaphors contribute to Plutarch’s evaluation of his heroes, further illuminating the light and shade through which he famously characterizes his protagonists. Since the Lives programmatically provides its readers with models to follow and to avoid, a new understanding of Plutarch’s fire metaphors will also contribute to an improved perception of Plutarch’s protreptic purpose as regards the way his readers should handle the most burning emotions in the system of imperial authority and power. As people hopefully engaged in a long-lasting and noteworthy political career in this system, Plutarch wanted them educated in how to handle and exploit such emotions.
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Gamze, Kavak Ümmühan Kaygısıız. "Siyasal Yaşam Açısından Biyografi Yazını: "Plutarch's Lives" İncelemesi." June 28, 2023. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8088588.
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MS 105-115 yılları arasında yazıldığı düşünülen bu seri 23 çift ve 4 tekli biyografiyi kapsamaktadır. Plutarkhos’un Lives serisinde Antik Yunan ve Roma’da popüler devlet adamlarını, tarih boyunca ön plana çıkmış ve tarihte iz bırakmış günümüzde okullarda stratejileri okutulan generaller, askeri kumandanlar, dönemin en ünlü hatipleri, liderler ve filozoflar yaygın ve nadir özellikleriyle ele alınmış, eşleştirilip kıyas edilmiştir. Çalışmanın amacı, Plutarkhos’un Lives’ini temel referans alarak siyaset biliminde bulunan temel kavramları, yaklaşımları, ideolojileri ve siyasal kurumları ortaya çıkarmak ve siyaset biliminde biyografi yazınının kaynaklık oluşturucu rolünü vurgulamaktır. İçerik analizi ile toplanan veriler ayrıntılı olarak incelenmiştir. Ayrıntılı metin analizi yapılmış ve bu bilgilerden yeni bir bütünlük oluşturulmuştur. Bulgular genel anlamda demokrasi, siyasal otoritenin merkezileştirilmesi, sınıf ayrımı, kadın ve aileye dair yasalar, tiranlık, adalet, toplumsal sınıflandırma, yargısız infaz, makyavelizm, aristokrasi, ütopik sosyalizm gibi siyaset biliminde öne çıkan temel kavramlar, ideoloji, hukuk, halk idaresi, devlet yönetimi ve askeri bağlam gibi diğer açılardan önemli veriler sağlamaktadır.
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Beneker, Jeffrey. "Plutarch as Storyteller and Moralist (on C. S. Chrysanthou, Plutarch’s Parallel Lives: Narrative Technique and Moral Judgement)." Histos 16 (August 1, 2022). http://dx.doi.org/10.29173/histos514.
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Gonzalez, Sergio, null null, null null, and null null. "Plutarch’s Alexander: an Endorsement of Platonism and Living as a Philosopher." Academic Leadership Journal in Student Research, 2013. http://dx.doi.org/10.58809/wpsl3238.
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Man has often had an inclination to promote his way of living to his fellow man. Believing that his way of approaching life is superior to all others, he has defended and enforced his views against and upon others. He has done this by way of reasoning and by way of violence. Although most instances of this natural desire are recognized in the form of wars and acts of violence, there have also been many other prominent instances involving peaceful reasoning, such as the revolutionary movements of Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi. Plutarch, a Greco-Roman historian and writer, is one noteworthy figure who also sought to persuade others through peaceful methods, specifically through his writing. What has enabled his name to be remembered through the centuries has undoubtedly been his greatest work, Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans, a work more commonly referred to as Parallel Lives. By examining this book, and the account on Alexander the Great in particular, readers can discover a peaceful and effective means of spreading their beliefs to others. Through witty rhetoric and other persuasive writing techniques, readers will learn how Plutarch uses Alexander’s celebrity status of the time to promote Platonism, a popular school of thought following the teachings of Plato, and living the life of a philosopher. Why Plutarch wants to promote Platonism, the life of a philosopher is also explored in this analysis, and corroborated through several Classical period historians. Finally, Plutarch’s attempt to paint Alexander as a Platonist and a worthy idol representing all philosophers will open the reader to a few new fundamental beliefs from a distant era of the past regarding living an ethical, self-governed, and virtuous life.
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Jolowicz, Daniel. "Spartans in the ancient Greek novels." Journal of Hellenic Studies, September 4, 2023, 1–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0075426923000630.
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Abstract Characters in the Greek novels comprise a dizzying array of identities, but one group of people who have received barely any attention are Spartans. They appear only in Chariton of Aphrodisias and Xenophon of Ephesus, where analysis of their presence sheds crucial light on the novels’ literary and sociocultural agendas. After an introduction (section I), section II discusses Chaereas’ self-characterization as the Spartan Leonidas in book 7 of Chariton’s Chaereas and Callirhoe in the context of Imperial-period Sparta: its institutions (the Leonideia festival), prosopography (the Euryclid dynasty) and reputation for military greatness. I link these elements to the ‘kinsman of Brasidas’ in book 8, who can be directly connected to an Imperial-period descendant of Brasidas in Plutarch’s Sayings of Kings and Commanders, as well as to Thucydides’ Brasidas. Section III explores the Spartan identity of Aegialeus and Thelxinoe, the protagonists of an inset story told to Habrocomes in book 5 of Xenophon’s Ephesiaca. Details of their lives correspond closely to Spartan cultural phenomena familiar from Plutarch’s Life of Lycurgus, especially in connection with marriage customs. This has consequences for the evaluation of Xenophon as a witty and sophisticated novelist, and for his compositional date. Section IV draws out the significant parallels between the depiction of Spartans in Chariton and Xenophon, which form the basis of proposals regarding their literary and chronological relationships.