Plutarch's Theory of Great Men and their Character

A Summary of Plutarch's Theory of Great Men and their Character

Plutarch believed that the actual character of men changes history. His thesis is that all great men affect their time. It is important to remember that in this context, great does not mean virtuous or worthy; it just means powerful and effective. For instance, Stalin and Attila the Hun both impacted history and were great men, but not in a positive way. Also, they do not have to have affected their time in a good way, they just had to have been extremely influential.

Parallel Lives

Plutarch wrote the book Parallel Lives circa 100 A.D. Parallel Lives was written in the format of pairs of philosophical biographies. In each set, a Roman person was compared to a similar Greek person. Plutarch's reasoning in writing such a book was not to document history, but to depict and examine the character of the men. Since that time, Parallel Lives has been studied by many throughout the ages. By writing about the lives of great men, as well as studying the character of his subjects, Plutarch was supporting his own theory that the very character of men changes history. Plutarch may have developed his theory while writing the book.

Plutarch himself said:

"It is not histories I am writing, but lives; and in the most glorious deeds there is not always an indication of virtue or vice, indeed a small thing like a phrase or a jest often makes a greater revelation of a character than battles where thousands die."

Translated by E. L. Bowie

This quotation illustrates the way in which Plutarch wrote Parallel Lives and the way he measured character. Plutarch measured character by small things that could be infinitely more meaningful than mere pageantry on a battlefield.

Plutarch occasionally made errors in his historical writings, but most important was his judgement of character, which he rightfully placed more emphasis on, because in his theories, it determined history.

Sources

Lendering, Jona. "Plutarch of Chaeronea." Articles on Ancient History. Livius,19 July 2010. Web. 25 Aug. 2011. <http://www.livius.org/pi-pm/plutarch/plutarch.htm>.

McCutchen, Wilmot, H. "Plutarch." 15 Ancient Greek Heroes from Plutarch's Lives. N.p., 12 Feb. 2011. Web. 25 Aug. 2011. <http://www.e-classics.com/plutarch.htm>.

Class Notes, August 25, 2011

Manual for Cultural Foundations of Ancient Civilizations (9)