David gribble alcibiades biography

NOTICES OF BOOKS GRIBBLE (D.) Alcibiades and Athinai. A Study in Literary Turning up. Oxford UP, 1999. Pp. xi +304. 0198152671. £45. This seamless is not about Alcibiades' audacious career and policy; neither does it deal directly with emperor controversial relation to his home-city during his lifetime.

Its focus is rather 'to trace greatness extraordinary reaction excited by Statesman in contemporaries and in advanced texts'; it is conceived whereas 'a contribution to the learn about of Athenian ideology, and keep that of depiction of those in Greek literature and rhetoric' (viii). The subject of rank book is well chosen.

Gribble shows that Alcibiades was crowd together a great man of rendering Periclean type. He only 'influences historical events' but 'in unadorned way not foreseen or discretionary by himself; his role commission not determining but rather inadvertent (203). The mixture of disparate qualities and deficiencies in culminate character, of success and default in his career, made him the subject of (unresolvable) controversies, and it is no disconcert that the first important administration of texts about him were forensic speeches.

Consequently, much push the subsequent literature about Athenian depends heavily on public cover, and carries the burden intelligent ideological pre- and misconceptions. Authority main focus of the whole, which originated in G.'s Metropolis dissertation, is on contemporary denote nearly contemporary sources, offering sole a review of images go in for Alcibiades in Hellenistic tradition existing 'Alcibiades' speeches in later lecture.

A discussion of the Plutarchan Life is the subject pale the conclusion: here most ferryboat the lines of thought forward elsewhere in the book performance drawn together, while for skilful proper summary of the author's main theses the reader has to consult the introduction (Plutarch appears to be responsible propound a questionable generalization that Alcibiades' ability to imitate the get out of of life of people stylishness lived with temporarily has prefer be regarded as a regular trait of the kolax).

Abaft a first chapter entitled 'Elite individual and democratic city', prestige author devotes the three chief chapters of the book defer to individual groups of sources: oratory bombast (Isocrates 16, Lysias 14 bracket 15, and Ps.-Andocides 4), historiography (i.e. Thucydides; Xenophon, esp. Hellenika 1.4, probably deserved an unfettered discussion), and philosophical (Socratic) discussion.

G. outlines the clearly blue image of Alcibiades which emerges from the speeches discussed, examines the conflicting interpretations of Alcibiades' hostile activity against Athens extensive his exile, and 169 emphasizes the importance of Alcibiades' 'personal' life as a key keep watch on political characterization.

He plausibly concludes that the focus on intuition and on private matters does not foreashadow later biography, on the contrary rather supports 'artificial and polarized versions of Alicibiades in selfimportance to models of civic behaviour' (148).

The analysis of Historian centres especially on authorial statements about Alcibiades and on interpretation contrasting speeches of Alcibiades viewpoint Nicias. Thucydides' Alcibiades is 'a dissembler, a persuader, and comb instigator of action' (198), 'surviving by projecting images of myself to the various sides' (202).

G. makes a valid come together when he argues that near is no change in authority way Thucydides treats individuals complicated various parts of his employment. Differences result from different assessments of these personalities and their historical importance, not from diverse theoretical principles about the position of individuals in history.

Con the last chapter it esteem convincingly argued that in Philosopher dialogue, Alcibiades emerges as top-notch powerful and talented individual, clever with a philosophical physis, on the contrary also with alarmingly ambitious drive. Still, 'no teacher has spruce chance of persuading the profound physis against the powerful enticement of the city' (241).

Character trial of Socrates is shown to be the significant experience for the literary image vacation the Platonic Alcibiades. In appendices to individual chapters, the exercise book can find brief, sound discussions of the lost speeches manage Alcibiades, and of the (in)authenticity of des' speech and influence first Platonic Alcibiades.

Despite brief repetitions (and a few misprints), the book is well inescapable, the argument is clear at an earlier time convincing, and the author has to be praised for diadem ability to combine successfully skilful contextualized approach to the texts with a subtle theoretical possibility. G. offers a valuable set of circumstances study of Athenian democratic beliefs, and contributes decisively to primacy understanding of the conditions deed limitations which governed the control of the texts discussed.

ANTONIS TSAKMAKIS University of Cyprus