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Plutarch moves back to more discussion of Themistocles’ character. While I didn’t often end up translating those sections, and so didn’t note them in detail, Herodotus at least is of the opinion that much of what Themistocles did was motivated by greed. He’s always being bribed into doing something that’s coincidentally very useful to the war effort, or coming up with some brilliant strategic move juuuust because there was cash in it for him. (Oh, Herodotus.) As is usual, Plutarch chooses to analyze this via Witty Anecdote.
Plutarch - Themistocles 5
Some people say that he became a serious money-getter through his generosity, for being fond of feasts, and famous for how much he spent on guests, he needed a generous supply of money; but others accuse him of the opposite, great stinginess and pettiness, [saying that] he even sold gifts of food.
When Diphilides the horse-breeder was asked for a colt by Themistocles, and wouldn’t sell it, Themistocles threatened to make his house into a wooden colt, hinting that he would stir up familial accusations and lawsuits in the household against the man.
And he went too far in everything because of his ambition, so that while he was still young and unknown he convinced Epicles, the cithara-player of Hermione, who was kept busy by the Athenians, to practice at his house, being ambitious for many men to seek his house and visit him.
And when he had gone to Olympia and was competing with Kimon for the most famous dinners and tents and other splendor and preparations, he didn’t please the Greeks. For they were thinking it was necessary to defer to that young man [Kimon] in such things, since he was from a great house; for he [Themistocles] had not yet become well-known, but seemed to be conceited while coming from insufficiently worthy circumstances, and he was accused of being pretentious.*
But he was also victorious when acting as a chorus-leader for a tragic play, and right then he acted with great zeal and ambition for the competition, and he dedicated tablets for the victory holding this sort of inscription: “Themistocles of Phrearrhioi was the chorus-leader, Phrynichus was the writer, Adeimantos was the archon.”
However, he was pleasing to the common men, calling each one of the citizens by name personally**, and holding himself up as a trustworthy judge in contract [disputes]; for example, when he said to Simonides of Ceos, who was asking him for some unreasonable things while he was in charge, that just as that man [Simonides] would not be a good poet while singing out of tune, he [Themistocles] would not be a clever archon while obliging him outside of the law.
Then again when he was mocking Simonides he said [Simonides] was stupid to scorn the Corinthians who were living in a great city, while having a picture of himself made while having a shameful appearance. He grew in power and pleased the common men, and overpowered Aristeides in the end and removed him via ostracization.
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* As a possibly interesting point of comparison, here’s how my book renders this paragraph: “Again, on a visit to Olympia he upset the Greeks by trying to rival Cimon in his banquets and fine tents and magnificent furnishings and the like. For people thought that such extravagance was allowable in Cimon, who was a young man who belonged to a great house, whereas Themistocles had not yet become a person of note, and was thought to be exalting himself beyond his due, without having the background for it, and so he brought upon himself the charge of pretentiousness.”
** Literally, “from the mouth”; I’m not really sure what the best rendition of this is, since it must be a stock phrase. (Where else would you speak someone’s name from?)
Plutarch - Themistocles 5
Some people say that he became a serious money-getter through his generosity, for being fond of feasts, and famous for how much he spent on guests, he needed a generous supply of money; but others accuse him of the opposite, great stinginess and pettiness, [saying that] he even sold gifts of food.
When Diphilides the horse-breeder was asked for a colt by Themistocles, and wouldn’t sell it, Themistocles threatened to make his house into a wooden colt, hinting that he would stir up familial accusations and lawsuits in the household against the man.
And he went too far in everything because of his ambition, so that while he was still young and unknown he convinced Epicles, the cithara-player of Hermione, who was kept busy by the Athenians, to practice at his house, being ambitious for many men to seek his house and visit him.
And when he had gone to Olympia and was competing with Kimon for the most famous dinners and tents and other splendor and preparations, he didn’t please the Greeks. For they were thinking it was necessary to defer to that young man [Kimon] in such things, since he was from a great house; for he [Themistocles] had not yet become well-known, but seemed to be conceited while coming from insufficiently worthy circumstances, and he was accused of being pretentious.*
But he was also victorious when acting as a chorus-leader for a tragic play, and right then he acted with great zeal and ambition for the competition, and he dedicated tablets for the victory holding this sort of inscription: “Themistocles of Phrearrhioi was the chorus-leader, Phrynichus was the writer, Adeimantos was the archon.”
However, he was pleasing to the common men, calling each one of the citizens by name personally**, and holding himself up as a trustworthy judge in contract [disputes]; for example, when he said to Simonides of Ceos, who was asking him for some unreasonable things while he was in charge, that just as that man [Simonides] would not be a good poet while singing out of tune, he [Themistocles] would not be a clever archon while obliging him outside of the law.
Then again when he was mocking Simonides he said [Simonides] was stupid to scorn the Corinthians who were living in a great city, while having a picture of himself made while having a shameful appearance. He grew in power and pleased the common men, and overpowered Aristeides in the end and removed him via ostracization.
---
* As a possibly interesting point of comparison, here’s how my book renders this paragraph: “Again, on a visit to Olympia he upset the Greeks by trying to rival Cimon in his banquets and fine tents and magnificent furnishings and the like. For people thought that such extravagance was allowable in Cimon, who was a young man who belonged to a great house, whereas Themistocles had not yet become a person of note, and was thought to be exalting himself beyond his due, without having the background for it, and so he brought upon himself the charge of pretentiousness.”
** Literally, “from the mouth”; I’m not really sure what the best rendition of this is, since it must be a stock phrase. (Where else would you speak someone’s name from?)