Editorial

Parallel Lives. Cimon and Lucullus

13 december, 2021≈ 2 min read

Authors

Ana Ferreira & Manuel Tröster

Synopsis

Bound together by the guiding theme of philhellenic benefaction, Cimon and Lucullus are the statesmen compared by Plutarch in another volume of Parallel Lives. While Lucullus distinguishes himself as a benefactor of the biographer’s home town and the Greek world during the Mithridatic Wars, Cimon emerges as an emblematic figure of the freedom and unity of the Greeks in the fight against the Persians. However, both protagonists also show defects and weaknesses, both in terms of excesses and extravagances in private life and, despite great political and military successes, in their interaction with the multitude and with their peers. Thus, Plutarch invites his readers to reflect on the qualities and shortcomings displayed by his heroes in the historical context of fifth-century Athens and late Republican Rome as well as in light of the challenges posed by their own present.