The Life of Alcibiades Read online

  portant families like his had relationships in other cities. Sometimes the

  ties were offi cial. One would be named proxenos for a foreign city—in

  other words would be responsible for representing interests as well as the

  citizens—rather like a consul today with the important difference that the

  role did not make those individuals bureaucrats. At other times, this offi ce

  might involve offering hospitality, something that held a strong element

  of obligation in the fi fth century. In some cases, these relationships might

  be quite personal—just as, in the modern world, aristocrats or business

  leaders feel connected to their counterparts in foreign countries. Alcibi-

  ades, through his family, found himself possessed of numerous ties of this

  kind. One example: at the time Athens concluded the peace with Sparta,

  in 421, Alcibiades was offended that the Spartans did not go through him

  as intermediary and, according to Thucydides, had not shown the respect

  owed him based on a former proxeny : his grandfather had given it up,

  but he himself dreamed of renewing it by taking charge of the Spartan

  prisoners (5.43.2). These ties were not insignifi cant. The grandfather in

  question, Alcibiades the elder, had given up these functions during earlier

  proceedings between Sparta and Athens. One of the most important men

  of Sparta—on whom Alcibiades depended greatly, a man named Endius—

  was the son of another Alcibiades, in Sparta! This Endius would later

  welcome the exiled Alcibiades in Sparta.

  It was much the same everywhere. Wishing to turn to Argos, Alcibi-

  ades sent “a private message” there. We will meet, in the story, “the hosts

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  Alcibiades had in Argos,” and we will also learn that he “was related

  to the leaders of the Milesians as well.” 9 Foreign affairs were often conducted through personal relationships, and the family of Alcibiades had

  no lack of these . . .

  In a word, his family lacked nothing.

  Wealth

  Actually—and do not think this is unimportant—we are talking about

  wealth on both sides. On the paternal side, we note that Cleinias pro-

  vided, at his own expense, a warship for the state. On the Alcmeonids’

  side, we know that they were related, after being exiled following a sacri-

  lege, to the priest of Delphi and had contributed heavily to the reconstruc-

  tion of the sanctuary there. Pericles himself was clearly in possession of

  signifi cant resources: at the beginning of the Peloponnesian War, the king

  of Sparta who led the invasion and sacking of Attica intended to spare

  Pericles’s property. Because there were social obligations between them,

  such an exception would have aroused suspicion against Pericles. Pericles

  defl ected this danger by declaring that if that were to happen, he would

  make a gift to the city of all his property.

  Alcibiades was born with every advantage, everything money could

  buy to advance his career, from an excellent education among the greatest

  minds to the means of achieving fame throughout the democracy.

  What’s more, Alcibiades did not have to settle for his own inheritance.

  Later, he would marry (in 422). And whom did he marry? A daughter of

  Hipponicus, who was also from an important family, one especially fa-

  mous for its wealth. Whenever a member of this family is named, it is with

  the adjective rich : rich Hipponicus, or wealthy Callias. It was at the home

  of this wealthy Callias (Alcibiades’s brother-in-law) that Plato’s dialogue

  Protagoras took place, because Callias was rich enough to invite every

  sophist around: Protagoras, Hippias, Prodicus, as well as all the fashion-

  able men who came to hear them. Plato names a dozen, and Alcibiades, of

  9. Thucydides 6.61.3, 8.17.2. If the cities of Chios, Ephesus, and Lesbos participated in the festivals in his honor (see below), it was no doubt because he had friends there.

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  course, is among them. In fact, we never really leave this milieu: Pericles’s

  wife had been married fi rst to Hipponicus; she was Callias’s mother. With

  ancient Athens, we soon get the impression that we are in a country where

  everyone knows everyone else, for it is a small world. And that is also true

  for the aristocracy in general. And the aristocracy still maintained a very

  privileged place in the most democratic of cities.

  There is another aspect to the wealth of Alcibiades. Because he spent

  so much, he always needed a lot of money. He had a stable of racehorses,

  a huge luxury. And he always wanted to show off. He made large public

  contributions sponsoring triremes (warships) and choruses for dramatic

  productions. They were still talking about him in the next century, and

  Plutarch will cite “his voluntary contributions of money, his support of

  public exhibitions, his unsurpassed munifi cence towards the city.” 10 In addition to this there were occasional gifts here and there. It is said that

  Phaedo—the philosopher who gives his name to a dialogue of Plato—was

  taken captive and sold into slavery. Socrates had Alcibiades buy his free-

  dom, according to some accounts at least. 11 Our man, as a true nobleman, loved grand deeds as well as opulence.

  Some people thought that, in these moments of extravagance, he spent

  too much; that happens in every age. And it may be that worry about his

  fi nancial solvency weighed on his conduct. The very sober Thucydides

  says so: “His tastes exceeded his means, for maintaining his stable as well

  as other expenses” (6.15.3). 12

  Nevertheless, the diffi culties caused by his extravagance have been

  exaggerated. When he was exiled, there was a public sale of all his confi s-

  cated assets. Stone fragments from this auction have been found. At fi rst

  it was believed that the sale was very small. As a result, some thought

  that he had been bankrupt, or that he had managed, before the seizure,

  to conceal and keep some of his wealth (something that still happens

  today, as we know). However, new fragments have been found and rest

  assured: there were still beds and bedding, coats and chests, and the

  10. See Isocrates 16.35; [Andocides] 4.20; Plutarch, Alcibiades 16.

  11 . These also mention Crito: see Diogenes Laertius 2.105.

  12 . Throughout the book, passages from Thucydides’s History are Richard Crawley’s translation in Robert B. Strassler, ed., The Landmark Thucydides: A Comprehensive Guide to the Peloponnesian War (New York: The Free Press, 1996).

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  like. 13 Furthermore, the city would compensate him for this sale by offering a gold crown and an estate. Though Alcibiades may have lost a

  fortune, he was never poor.

  Clearly, this man was a prince.

  Now we can see exactly what that meant. Athenian politics had long

  been in the hands of this cultured and aristocratic group. But that tra-

  dition was changing because many Athenians resented it. The rights of

  citizenship had expanded, as had elementary education: the new social

  classes were gaining importance. As long as Pericles lived, things were

  fi ne; but after his death, power passed to Cleon, a rich tanner, and all

  our sources commented on his
vulgarity, brutishness, and lack of cul-

  ture. Apparently, ordinary people in every democracy are vulnerable

  to a vulgarity that feels familiar and optimistic. Aristophanes wrote a

  comedy, fi ve years after Pericles’s death, denouncing this rule by mer-

  chants. In the play, the followers of Demos, the People, cite an invented

  oracle according to which there would come a ruler of the city who was

  a seller of hemp, until another came who was a sheep dealer, and fi nally

  another individual, the worst of all, a sausage seller (Knights 126–45).

  Naturally, he would not have any education: “I know my letters, and

  then actually, very little, and very badly.” “Your only fault is knowing

  anything, even ‘a little, even badly.’ Leading the people is not the work

  of an educated man of good character, but demands an ignoramus, a

  jerk” (188–94). We won’t go further into this social development that

  always runs the risk of leading, as it did in Athens, to the emergence

  of a terrible demagogue. This degeneracy was denounced by everyone,

  from the comedians and tragedians to Thucydides and Aristotle. Such

  a judgment demonstrates the superior wealth, class, and appeal that

  the young descendant of two famous families had in contrast to these

  new demagogues. Alcibiades was supposed to be the next Pericles for

  Athens.

  And now let’s acknowledge that Alcibiades’s advantages were not lim-

  ited to the material and the practical.

  13 . See chapter 5 regarding this sale. The steles were published in 1953. See articles by W. K. Pritchett and Anne Pippin in Hesperia, 1956, pp. 178, 317, and 318, 328. Even following the exile and return of Alcibiades, authors were still disputing the size of his fortune and his losses: see Lysias 14.37, 19.52

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  Intellectual Superiority

  Just imagine the early education of young Alcibiades, the ward of Pericles.

  From childhood, he had heard political discussion among well-informed

  men. According to them, his mind was sharp. In Pericles’s home he met,

  fi rst as a child and then in adolescence, the most distinguished thinkers of

  his time. He had undoubtedly learned rhetoric, for his mentor was a friend

  of the greatest sophists. And we know the affection that Socrates always

  showed him. How could such teachers and role models not have kindled

  the dazzling intelligence that had so often been a mark of that family?

  Moreover, no one ever questioned his keen eye for politics, the rapidity

  and breadth of his grasp. Thucydides, whose praise of Alcibiades is always

  reserved, says that the city lost a great deal in sending him away because

  “publicly his conduct of the war was as good as could be expected.” 14

  And in every case, when faced with a problem, Alcibiades found a solu-

  tion, the right combination of the necessary steps to take.

  He was also able to persuade others. Ah! How well he did this. He

  could convince crowds with his eloquence; and he could do the same one

  on one, arguing with a combination of promises and charm. Even the

  authorities on such matters, Demosthenes and Theophrastus, said that he

  spoke admirably. Theophrastus stated, according to Plutarch (10.4), that

  of all men Alcibiades was “most capable of fi nding or inventing what-

  ever the circumstances demanded.” He sometimes paused in his effort to

  fi nd just the right words (a slight mispronunciation lending charm to his

  words . . .). In short, he approached politics with a social superiority that

  matched his undeniable intellectual superiority, each facilitating the other.

  Even apart from these qualities, it was apparent that everything was

  leading him into politics. He had the means and the talent. He also had

  the desire. Accustomed from an early age to being fi rst in everything, he

  strongly desired a political role. This is how he is portrayed in the dia-

  logues of Plato where he appears, particularly in the dialogue called Al-

  cibiades (sometimes called First Alcibiades to distinguish it from another dialogue of the same name). We will return to this Alcibiades . 15 For now

  14 . Thucydides 6.15.4. On this expression, see below, chapters 2 and 5.

  15 . See below, “First Interlude” and chapter 12.

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  we must bear in mind the ambition propelling this young man to political

  triumphs that Socrates boldly explains: “What is the hope that fi lls you? I

  will tell you. You think that if one day you address the people—and you

  intend to do so very soon—Athenians will immediately be persuaded that

  you merit even more respect than Pericles or anyone before him, and you

  will say to yourself that henceforth you will be the most powerful man in

  this city. And if you are the most powerful man among us, you will be the

  same among all Greeks; no, not just among Greeks, but also among the

  barbarians who inhabit this continent” (105a–c). Naturally, this ambition

  doesn’t stop with a continent: true ambition knows no limits. And this

  text says exactly what is driving him.

  And before long that ambition will move him to act. We see him fi rst in

  war—he was very brave—and soon he will make his appearance in poli-

  tics. He will assume the highest offi ces that his age will allow.

  Socrates’s name has already been mentioned on two occasions. In this

  picture of all the gifts accorded the young Alcibiades, it would be an odd

  omission to leave out one very unusual advantage, unlike all the others

  and not derived from his family: it was his access to the philosophical

  ideal and infl uence of Socrates.

  Socrates’s Friendship

  The friendship between the young man and the philosopher is seen best

  in the dialogue that opened this chapter, Plato’s Symposium . But the ties

  they shared are confi rmed in many quarters, in both dialogues and bi-

  ographies. It is true that Socrates loved Alcibiades and Alcibiades loved

  Socrates. Even if we put aside the erotic aspect of their relationship, it sug-

  gests Alcibiades’s deep comprehension, at least temporarily or sporadi-

  cally, of another Socratic ideal, the desire to follow the path of goodness,

  which reveals an exceptional understanding and admiration. After all, it

  was to Alcibiades, the failed disciple, that Plato assigned the task of de-

  scribing his master. 16

  In the Symposium a handsome young man enters and sits next to his

  host. Once there, he notices with awe that his neighbor on the other side

  16 . On his reasons for this choice, see chapter 12.

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  is Socrates. They exchange coy remarks. Alcibiades learns what the din-

  ers were talking about and decides that he himself will give a toast to

  Socrates. He begins, and it is these famous pictures of Socrates that have

  moved generations of readers. In all of Plato’s works, no text is more per-

  sonal, or more profound, on the subject of the master.

  In other words, Alcibiades could depict, in the liveliest way, the person-

  ality of Socrates; and, by his own account, he was also touched, moved,

  and inspired.

  He begins with a comparison to the statues of the Sileni. Like them, but

/>   without the fl ute, Socrates charmed all who heard him, and Alcibiades de-

  scribed the effect of his words: “They strike us, trouble us, and we are pos-

  sessed.” 17 And then he says, speaking only for himself: “When I hear him speak, my heart beats faster than any Corybantes in a trance; his words

  make my tears fl ow; and I see great numbers of other people who feel the

  same emotions.” After listening to Socrates, “it didn’t seem possible to go

  on living as I had before . . . ; he forced me to promise myself that, when I

  was lacking so much, I should persist in thinking not of myself but of the

  affairs of Athens.”

  In other words, Socrates was like these statuettes (Sileni) in that inside

  he holds the most precious wisdom: “When he grows serious and the Si-

  lenus is exposed, has anyone else ever seen the fi gurines enclosed inside?

  I don’t know. But I have. And I found them to be so divine, so precious,

  of such complete beauty, so extraordinary, that I would have done on the

  spot whatever Socrates asked me to do.”

  There followed a long speech on Socrates’s temperance, 18 on his independence from external things, and on his courage.

  The speech describes Socrates admirably, but it also shows something

  about Alcibiades. It shows him impassioned in the evocation of a moral

  idealism, moved by the idea of the good, ready to change his life, a disciple

  more sensitive, more moved, more passionate than any other.

  The beautiful youth, inebriated from the beginning, could also be

  drunk with exaltation for the discovery of the good: “I myself have seen

  it . . .”

  17 . 215d. Subsequent quotations are all in the pages that follow this one. The translation is that of Benjamin Jowett.

  18. See chapter 2.

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  That is quite a gift Plato has given him. None of the previous speakers

  and none of the disciples who appear in the dialogues have had such royal

  treatment. Whatever the reasons for this choice, which will not become

  clear until the end of the book, we must admit that it refl ects a real rela-

  tionship that left a deep impression. Alcibiades may have been infl uenced

  by a charm that affected him deeply.

  We will return to this charm in the next chapter, and to an implied

  amorous context. What mattered here, in a chapter that opened with Pla-