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Oh, Themistocles. This week is going to be fun! I need to review everything I’ve done so far about Themistocles from Herodotus, Thucydides, and Plutarch, plus translate three more sections of Plutarch for my personalized final. (We each got to pick three pages of what we hadn’t reached in class, for our own special section on the final; I picked the last three sections, which are almost exactly three pages all together.) And of course I need to be reviewing everything from Latin this semester at the same time...
Anyway, so as not to leave anyone hanging, I’m going to summarize all of the sections I’m skipping in Plutarch, and then go on to give my translation of those last three sections as usual when I reach them.
Plutarch - Themistocles 19
Themistocles works on rebuilding the city and the city walls. (You’ll recall this story from Thucydides, with him tricking the Spartans.) In Plutarch’s version, he has to bribe people to get this done. He also joins up Athens to Piraeus, and by focusing on the sea instead of the land, makes the common people more powerful than the nobles.
Plutarch - Themistocles 20
Themistocles suggests burning the rest of the Greek fleet while it’s at dock for the winter, and thus making Athens the sole naval power in Greece. This is vetoed. Then there’s an argument over who gets to be in theUnited Nations Amphictyonic Council, and he pisses off the Spartans by trying to get more cities included, not just a few very powerful ones.
Plutarch - Themistocles 21
Themistocles tries to extort money from people, but fails. A poet writes a nasty song about him for not remembering old friends. Then the poet writes even nastier songs about him.
Plutarch - Themistocles 22
His fellow citizens get annoyed at him. He builds a temple to Artemis that names her “Best Counsellor”, and they think that he’s giving airs to himself by promoting the whole “gives good advice” thing too much. The Athenians ostracize him to keep him from gaining too much power.
Plutarch - Themistocles 23
Pausanius once tried to convince Themistocles to join him in betraying the Greeks to the Persians, but Themistocles refused. When Pausanius is caught out, the documents involved are used as proof that Themistocles was selling them out to the Persians. The Spartans denounce him, and while Themistocles writes a letter of defense (since he’s still outside Athens), the people decide to arrest him.
Plutarch - Themistocles 24
Themistocles runs off to Cocyra, then goes to Admetus, king of the Molossians, and asks him for help. (You may recall this story from Thucydides as well, with the king being an old enemy of his.) Plutarch claims that the son-holding thing was staged to give the king an excuse not to turn him over to the Athenians--”Sorry, it’s the most sacred supplication possible!”--but isn’t really clear on why the man would want to do this. Possibly he hated the Athenians more than he did Themistocles. Anyway, someone smuggles Themistocles’ wife and kids out of Athens to join up with him, and is subsequently put to death for this.
Plutarch - Themistocles 25
Remember the story about him on the merchant ship? Same thing.
Plutarch - Themistocles 26
Themistocles hides in Aegae, where no one but his host knows him. He has a prophetic dream about an eagle, which Plutarch does not explain and I do not understand. They smuggle him out by putting him a wagon closed up like a tent, and sending it off with guards; when anyone asks who’s in the wagon, they claim it’s a Greek woman being sent to marry one of the King’s courtiers (and thus following the Persian custom of being hidden from the view of strangers).
Plutarch - Themistocles 27
Finally arriving at court, he’s told sternly that he can only meet the king if he prostrates himself before the man as the image of a god. Themistocles sort of shrugs and gives the equivalent of “When in Rome...”
Plutarch - Themistocles 28
Themistocles is brought before the Persian king, and reveals who he is. He makes a pretty speech about how awesome it is that he should be there to help the king. The king is really excited to have his own Themistocles.
Plutarch - Themistocles 29
The guards and courtiers don’t like him, but the king’s pleased; he gives Themistocles the sum that the Greeks were offering as a reward for his capture, because, hey, Themistocles captured himself! Then Themistocles asks for time to learn the Persian language so that he can communicate properly. He’s honored greatly, becomes a friend to the king’s mother, and generally annoys all the courtiers. He also gets a lot of cities.
Anyway, so as not to leave anyone hanging, I’m going to summarize all of the sections I’m skipping in Plutarch, and then go on to give my translation of those last three sections as usual when I reach them.
Plutarch - Themistocles 19
Themistocles works on rebuilding the city and the city walls. (You’ll recall this story from Thucydides, with him tricking the Spartans.) In Plutarch’s version, he has to bribe people to get this done. He also joins up Athens to Piraeus, and by focusing on the sea instead of the land, makes the common people more powerful than the nobles.
Plutarch - Themistocles 20
Themistocles suggests burning the rest of the Greek fleet while it’s at dock for the winter, and thus making Athens the sole naval power in Greece. This is vetoed. Then there’s an argument over who gets to be in the
Plutarch - Themistocles 21
Themistocles tries to extort money from people, but fails. A poet writes a nasty song about him for not remembering old friends. Then the poet writes even nastier songs about him.
Plutarch - Themistocles 22
His fellow citizens get annoyed at him. He builds a temple to Artemis that names her “Best Counsellor”, and they think that he’s giving airs to himself by promoting the whole “gives good advice” thing too much. The Athenians ostracize him to keep him from gaining too much power.
Plutarch - Themistocles 23
Pausanius once tried to convince Themistocles to join him in betraying the Greeks to the Persians, but Themistocles refused. When Pausanius is caught out, the documents involved are used as proof that Themistocles was selling them out to the Persians. The Spartans denounce him, and while Themistocles writes a letter of defense (since he’s still outside Athens), the people decide to arrest him.
Plutarch - Themistocles 24
Themistocles runs off to Cocyra, then goes to Admetus, king of the Molossians, and asks him for help. (You may recall this story from Thucydides as well, with the king being an old enemy of his.) Plutarch claims that the son-holding thing was staged to give the king an excuse not to turn him over to the Athenians--”Sorry, it’s the most sacred supplication possible!”--but isn’t really clear on why the man would want to do this. Possibly he hated the Athenians more than he did Themistocles. Anyway, someone smuggles Themistocles’ wife and kids out of Athens to join up with him, and is subsequently put to death for this.
Plutarch - Themistocles 25
Remember the story about him on the merchant ship? Same thing.
Plutarch - Themistocles 26
Themistocles hides in Aegae, where no one but his host knows him. He has a prophetic dream about an eagle, which Plutarch does not explain and I do not understand. They smuggle him out by putting him a wagon closed up like a tent, and sending it off with guards; when anyone asks who’s in the wagon, they claim it’s a Greek woman being sent to marry one of the King’s courtiers (and thus following the Persian custom of being hidden from the view of strangers).
Plutarch - Themistocles 27
Finally arriving at court, he’s told sternly that he can only meet the king if he prostrates himself before the man as the image of a god. Themistocles sort of shrugs and gives the equivalent of “When in Rome...”
Plutarch - Themistocles 28
Themistocles is brought before the Persian king, and reveals who he is. He makes a pretty speech about how awesome it is that he should be there to help the king. The king is really excited to have his own Themistocles.
Plutarch - Themistocles 29
The guards and courtiers don’t like him, but the king’s pleased; he gives Themistocles the sum that the Greeks were offering as a reward for his capture, because, hey, Themistocles captured himself! Then Themistocles asks for time to learn the Persian language so that he can communicate properly. He’s honored greatly, becomes a friend to the king’s mother, and generally annoys all the courtiers. He also gets a lot of cities.