Images of Alexander the Great in the Literature of the Second Sophistic Period

Abstract

This thesis, Images of Alexander the Great in the Literature of the Second Sophistic Period, explores Greek literary views of Alexander during the Second Sophistic and examines how these might have been the product of contemporary social and political conditions. The major extant authors to comment on Alexander in this era are Plutarch, Dio Chrysostom, Arrian, Lucian, and Aelius Aristides. A brief study covering possible influences upon Second Sophistic images of Alexander introduces the thesis. This background investigation includes pre-Roman views of Alexander in the Greek world, the effect of Roman domination upon Greek perceptions of the Macedonian conqueror, Roman views of Alexander, intellectual activity in second century Greece, and the personal backgrounds of the Greek authors studied. The discussion of the different aspects of Alexander is divided according to the qualities which the Second Sophistic authors perceived as 'good' and those which they considered 'bad'. This thesis first examines the 'good qualities' of Alexander which are important to one or more of the authors of the Second Sophistic period. These are Alexander's effective kingship through his skill as a soldier and as a statesman, and his moral righteousness. A short discussion of how the authors of the Second Sophistic period perceived human character is an important step in dealing with the portrayal of a man whose behaviour was commonly thought to have degenerated. This precedes the discussion about the qualities of Alexander commonly thought of as bad. Two broad categories of Alexander's bad qualities can be distinguished: those which first manifested themselves during Alexander's childhood and so were considered inborn vices, and those which were thought to be the product of later corruption by Persian luxury and alcohol. The findings of this thesis are that the views of the authors studied to some extent reflect contemporary social and political circumstances. Specifically, the contradictory views of Alexander provided by some authors of this age may be ascribed to the importance of rhetorical training, which taught sophists the ability to declaim from any point of view. The largely positive views of Alexander given by authors writing under Trajan may reflect that emperor's admiration for the great Macedonian. Positive views may also reveal a nostalgia for the Greek past, but do not do so to the denigration of the Roman present.