«Symposion» and «Philanthropia» in Plutarch - Bad Request ...

Anastasios G. Nikolaidisstruck a familiar note. As a matter of fact, Plutarch’s usage of philanthropiaand cognate words, pivotal terms of his ethical vocabulary, covers, as is wellknown,a much wider range of meanings and nuances than the three aforesaidkinds 3 ; more importantly, the concept of philanthropia in Plutarch is not simplysynonymous with sociability and its various ramifications, as the first and thirdkind of Laertios’ passage suggest, but perhaps constitutes the very kernel of hismoral outlook. One might aptly say that philanthropia for Plutarch is the lensthrough which he sees, examines, judges and evaluates individuals and humanactivities at large 4 .Nevertheless, there are many instances in his writings, both in Lives andMoralia, where Plutarch employs the words φιλάνθρωπος and φιλανθρωπίαto describe nuances of sociability and all sorts of refined modes of behaviour,such as courtesy, politeness, affability, tactfulness, discretion, friendliness,hospitality, and so on. To put it otherwise, Plutarch uses these words in away that corresponds to Laertios’ first and third kind, thus endorsing andrecommending a philanthropia that, unlike the one of the second kind, seemsto be ethically indifferent or neutral.The first kind (philanthropia through salutations) occurs mostly in theLives, where sociability is often a political device for gaining the favour of themultitude. To this aspect I will return. The third kind (philanthropia throughdinner-parties and hospitality) is the sociability featuring equally in the Livesand Moralia, and predominantly, perhaps, in the Table Talks. As for the secondkind (philanthropia through helping and benefitting the needy), which carriesmore pronounced ethical overtones and illustrates par excellence the moralsense of philanthropia, it will not concern us here 5 .Before going to the Lives, I would like to discuss a few passages from theMoralia, where the notion of sociability primarily occurs in the context of asymposion; and for this aspect of philanthropia Plutarch’s Table Talks offer anexcellent testimony. The man who, after a solitary meal, said: “today I ate; I did3See R. Hirzel, 1912, p. 25: “Plutarch hat…den Begriff in den verschiedenstenSchattierungen verfolgt”; cf. also F. Frazier, 1996, p. 234: “On ne peut qu’être frappé parl’ampleur impressionnante de son champ d’action [sc. of philanthropia] dans les Vies”.4Cf. also J. De Romilly, 1979, p. 280: “La douceur est donc devenue un critère essentiel pourjuger un homme” (in Romilly’s treatment ‘douceur’ mainly translates praotes, but also – almost tothe same extent – philanthropia). For the importance of philanthropia in P. see R. Hirzel, 1912,pp. 23-32 (esp. p. 26: “Ich wüßte nicht, was sich mehr eignete für das Prinzip PlutarchischerMoral in Leben und Lehre erklärt zu werden als eben die Philanthropie...die Summe allerTugenden”); B. Bucher-Isler, 1972, p. 20 (“ein Zentralbegriff ”); F. Frazier, 1996, pp. 233-36;H. M. Martin Jr.; A. G. Nikolaidis, 2008, pp. XV-XVI; C. Panagopoulos, 1977, pp. 218sqq., pp. 234-35; J. Ribeiro Ferreira, 2008; J. De Romilly, 1979, pp. 275-305, esp. 275-92;K. Ziegler, 1964 2 , pp. 306/943.5For some telling examples of this kind of philanthropia see Publ. 1.2, 4.5, Sol. 15.3, Thes.36.4, Pel. 6.4-5, Marc. 20.1-2, Cleom. 32.5, Phoc. 10.7-8; see also Mor. 823A, 1051E, 1075E.According to [Arist.], VV 1251b31 beneficence belongs to virtue (ἔστι δὲ τῆς ἀρετῆς καὶ τὸεὐεργετεῖν τοὺς ἀξίους), and so philanthropia as beneficence is one of the concomitants of virtue(1251b34f.: ἀκολουθεῖ δὲ τῇ ἀρετῇ…εἶναι καὶ φιλόξενον καὶ φιλάνθρωπον…ἃ δὴ πάντα τῶνἐπαινουμένων ἐστί).276