Plutarch’s Lives Volume One PDF
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| Plutarch Lives — Volume one |
The Loeb Classical Library edition of Plutarch’s Lives, translated by Bernadotte Perrin, opens with Volume I — a cornerstone of classical biography. Plutarch’s purpose was not simply to record history, but to compare the lives of great Greeks and Romans, drawing moral lessons from their character and deeds.
About Plutarch
Plutarch was born in Chaeroneia, a small town on the northern edge of Boeotia, around the middle of the first century CE, during the reign of Emperor Claudius. He came from a family of comfortable means and generous culture, and received a liberal education.
He studied at Athens, then the intellectual capital of the Mediterranean, where he became a disciple of Ammonius of Lamptrae, a Peripatetic philosopher deeply versed in religious lore. Returning to his native town, Plutarch soon represented Chaeroneia as deputy to the Roman governor of Greece.
From his writings we infer that he traveled widely — across Greece, Asia Minor, Egypt, and Italy — and spent considerable time in Rome, where he handled public business. He admitted, however, that he never mastered Latin thoroughly, confessing in the introduction to his Demosthenes that his duties left him little time to study the language. Greek remained the language of his literary and philosophical work.
Contents of Volume I
- Prefatory Notes & Introduction
- Order of the Parallel Lives in this Edition
- Traditional Order of the Parallel Lives
- Dictionary of Proper Names
Featured Lives
- Theseus and Romulus
Legendary founders of Athens and Rome, compared for their leadership and mythic origins.
From introduction:
- Lycurgus and Numa
Lawgivers of Sparta and Rome, embodying order, tradition, and civic virtue.
- Solon and Publicola
Reformers of Athens and Rome, champions of democracy and liberty.
Comparison
Plutarch’s hallmark is the comparative essays following each pair:
- Comparison of Theseus and Romulus
- Comparison of Lycurgus and Numa
