Text Access:

Plutarch. The Rise and Fall of Athens. Trans. Ian Scott-Kilvert. Marmondsworth, Middlesex and New York: Penguin Books, 1960. Print.

Journal Entries, Class Discussion

"He had a golden shield made for him, which was emblazoned not with any ancestral device, but with the figure of Eros armed with a thunderbolt." (Plutarch Life of Alcibiades p. 258 [Penguin edition] = sect. 16.1).

Why would the device shown on Alcibiades' shield have been the god Eros holding thunderbolts?

Note that it was Zeus usually associated with the thunderbolt, not Eros.

In context, which is to say, in the context not just of the passage in question, but of Alcibiades' life and times, what do you think that m ight be trying to say? What messages does Alcibiades, what messages does Plutarch, Alcibiades' biographer, seem to want to get across? What messages do you as reader "hear"?

Preliminary Comments

In her book Love Among the Ruins, Victoria Wohl aptly writes of "the erōs of Alcibiades," meaning the erōs felt by Alcibiades for a variety of love objects (and not simply sexual ones) but also the erōs (again, not simply sexual) felt by others for Alcibiades.

Alcibiades, in other words, sort of stands as a symbol for a great deal of what we've been studying in this class. But he also was a real person, and his life, words, and acts offer us a laboratory in peithō: the "good," the "bad," and the ambiguous.

So, when reading, try to keep in mind that Alcibiades presents us with a complex set of phenomena. No simplistic narrative could possibly sum him up; no single verdict can be rendered in his case. Rather, and very much in line with topics explored for this class, he forces us to ask

How Athens could find itself under the spell of a "charismatic" leader, and whether that contradicts the principles of democracy or expresses what democracy is, fundamentally, all about. (The "Weber" question)
Whether Alcibiades and his politics illustrate the tendency of — or at least the potential for — elites to form themselves into self-interested "steering committees" (official or unofficial) within democracies. (The "Michels" question)
If Athens, for all that it had fallen under the spell of a character like Alcibiades, wasn't choosing wisely when it decided to invite Alcibiades back from exile to resume leadership in the war. (The "Finley-rational-choice" question)

Background

Who's Who?

Alcibiades, Athenian, son of Cleinias and Deinomache
Born Athens ca. 450, died Phrygia (Asia Minor - modern Turkey) 404
Wealthy aristocrat, flamboyant bon vivant, sportsman, statesman, general, orator
On his father's death at the Battle of Coronea (447), became the ward of his uncle, the statesman Pericles, and of Pericles' brother

Time Line

An excellent summation of events is provided by Thomas Martin in his Overview of Classical Greek History at Perseus. Below, I provide links to key pages.

480	Battle of Artemisium, at which Cleinias, father of Alcibiades, distinguishes himself.
ca. 450	Birth of Alcibiades.
447	Battle of Coronea, in which Cleinias dies. Alcibiades becomes the ward of Pericles.
431-404	Peloponnesian War.
431-430	Potidean campaign, at which Socrates saves the life of Alcibiades.
424	Battle of Delium, at which Alcibiades saves the life of Socrates.
422	Death of Cleon (democratic hawk) opens way to serious peace negotiations with Sparta.
421	Peace with Sparta (the "Peace of Nicias").
420	A surprisingly young Alcibiades (early 30s) elected general (strategos); secures alliance of certain Peloponnesian states (Argos, Mantinea, Elis) with Athens.
418	Sparta defeats that alliance at the Battle of Mantinea. The Peace of Nicias is dead-letter.
417	Democrats overthrown, then restored, at Argos.
416	Alcibiades' unparalleled Olympic triumph. Enters seven teams into the four-horse chariot race. Wins 1st, 2nd, and 4th prize. Athens attacks neutral Melos; kills men, enslaves women and children. ("Melian Dialogue" in Thucydides.)
416	"Sicilian Debate" at Athens (over whether to go to war against Syracuse in Sicily). Thucydides' account features the speeches of Nicias (contra) and Alcibiades (pro). Athenians vote to attack; Nicias, Lamachus, and Alcibiades made co-commanders.
415	Athenians sail upon Syracuse. Mutilation of the herms and desecration of the Mysteries at Athens results in charges filed against Alcibiades, who defects to Sparta.
413	Defeat of Athenians at Syracuse is partly helped by Alcibiades' military advice to the Spartans, who send help to Syracuse. This defeat is followed by multiple revolts among Athens' allies.
411-410	Alcibiades helps organize an oligarchic revolution at Athens (the "Oligarchy of the 400"). But democracy is soon restored.
408	Alcibiades, who had already been recalled from exile in 411 (by a decree proposed by Critias), finally returns to Athens.
406	Held responsible for the naval defeat at Notium, and under attack by his opponents among the Athenians (Plutarch p. 281-2), Alcibiades is forced into exile for the last time.
404	Defeat of Athens by Sparta, end of the Peloponnesian War, establishment of Oligarchy of the 30. Leaders (Critias and others) arrange for Alcibiades to be murdered.

Quiz 2 Study Guide

On TU, 4-Apr, there will be a VERY SHORT QUIZ of material covered in class assignments and lectures 2-Mar (sophists) through and including 28-Mar (Aristophanes' Lysistrata).

It will be very short, plain, non-interpretive, and straightforward — a "fact-check" quiz more than anything else to encourage attentive reading and in-class listening.

It will also be MULTIPLE CHOICE, including a "none of the above" choice for each question.

Specifically, expect:

Multiple choice questions targeting. . .
Class-assigned readings, for which know. . .
- authors (where appropriate, though you won't have authors' names for everything we've read)
- titles (where appropriate, though you won't have titles for everything we've read)
- characters, key actors/speakers (where appropriate)
- basic and crucial content info
key terms and concepts listed below, for which consult
- your notes
- our target texts
- my PowerPoints
- Terms page

Review Terms List. (For definitions, see "Terms")

But please also review assigned readings, which this list does not necessarily address.

antilogic
apragmosune
captatio benevolentiae
colon
demophile, demophilia, demophilia topos
doxa
epideixis
eristic
kolakeia
nomos
parrhesia
patrios politeia
phusis
pros kharin legein
antirhetoric
sophist, sophistic
spin
stasis
topos

[top]