Moralia
In the 1st century, Plutarch of Chaeronea wrote a set of essays that would eventually contain seventy-eight distinct works. These texts range from serious philosophical treatises to humorous dialogues like Odysseus and Gryllus. In this dialogue, Homer's hero converses with one of Circe's enchanted pigs about reason in animals. The collection also includes On the Fortune or the Virtue of Alexander the Great as an important adjunct to his biographical work on the general. Plutarch composed these Moralia first while writing his famous Lives occupied much of the last two decades of his life. Many generations of Europeans have read or imitated them including Michel de Montaigne and Renaissance Humanists.
The oldest surviving manuscript containing the full list is Parisinus gr. 1678 which dates to the tenth century. This copy was very damaged in the folia containing the list before a second hand of the twelfth century intervened to add the missing text. The only complete manuscript containing all seventy-eight extant treatises dates to sometime shortly after 1302 AD. Modern critical editions rely heavily on scholars like Irigoin who published introductions and catalogues in 1987. Early printed versions appeared in the 15th and 16th centuries with translations by William Watson Goodwin in 1871 and Frank Cole Babbitt for the Loeb Classical Library starting in 1927.
Some works later attributed to Plutarch are now understood as pseudepigrapha written by others. These include On Fate and Lives of the Ten Orators which come from a slightly later era than the main collection. Scholars label these texts Pseudo-Plutarch because they contain thoughts not actually his own. Despite this misattribution the works remain classical in origin and hold value to historians studying ancient philosophy. Other disputed titles include On Music and On the Opinions of Philosophers found within the broader Moralia corpus.
Plutarch's five Spartan lives and Sayings of Spartans serve as some of the richest sources for historians of Lacedaemonia since Spartans wrote no history prior to the Hellenistic period. He visited Sparta but many ancient customs he reports had been long abandoned so he never actually saw what he wrote about. Historians Sarah Pomeroy and Stanley Burstein note that admiration writers like Plutarch felt led them to exaggerate its monolithic nature. The Spartan egalitarianism and superhuman immunity to pain that have seized the popular imagination are likely myths with Plutarch as their main architect. Yet his writings on Sparta more than those of any other ancient author have shaped later views despite potential to misinform.
Book IV of the Moralia contains Roman Questions and Greek Questions which illuminate customs through essays posing questions like why patricians were not permitted to live on the Capitoline. One of his most important works on religion is Why Pythia does not give oracles in verse connected to his priestly duties at Delphi. Even more significant is the dialogue On the E at Delphi featuring Ammonius a Platonic philosopher and teacher of Plutarch alongside Lambrias his brother. This text explains how the letter E written on Apollo's temple originated from five genuine wise men rather than seven tyrants who used political power to be incorporated into the list.
In On the Malice of Herodotus Plutarch criticizes the historian for all manner of prejudice and misrepresentation against Greek city-states. It has been called the first instance in literature of the slashing review by 19th century English historian George Grote. Barrow concluded that Plutarch was fanatically biased in favor of the Greek cities because they could do no wrong according to his analysis. The essay likely served as a rhetorical exercise where Plutarch played devil's advocate to see what could be said against so favorite and well-known a writer. His real failing in Plutarch's eyes was advancing any criticism at all of the city-states that saved Greece from Persia.
Erasmus of Rotterdam accessed the Moralia for the first time while being an assistant to Demetrius Ducas in Venice during the early 1500s. He and Girolamo Aleandro served as proofreaders of a Greek edition published by Aldus Manutius in March 1509. When Erasmus left Venice for England he took one book with him to translate into Latin at Cambridge in 1511. Several chapters appeared in England until the complete Moralia with eight chapters was published in August 1514 in Basel by Johann Froben. Five editions of Erasmus's translation were printed by Froben between 1514 and 1520 ensuring wide dissemination across Europe.
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Common questions
What is the Moralia by Plutarch of Chaeronea?
The Moralia is a set of seventy-eight distinct essays and dialogues written by Plutarch of Chaeronea in the 1st century. These texts range from serious philosophical treatises to humorous dialogues like Odysseus and Gryllus.
When was the oldest surviving manuscript of the Moralia created?
The oldest surviving manuscript containing the full list is Parisinus gr. 1678 which dates to the tenth century. This copy was very damaged before a second hand of the twelfth century intervened to add the missing text.
Who wrote the pseudepigrapha attributed to Plutarch in the Moralia?
Scholars label certain texts as Pseudo-Plutarch because they contain thoughts not actually his own and come from a slightly later era than the main collection. Examples include On Fate, Lives of the Ten Orators, On Music, and On the Opinions of Philosophers.
Why are Plutarch's writings on Sparta considered valuable yet potentially misleading for historians?
Plutarch's five Spartan lives and Sayings of Spartans serve as some of the richest sources for historians of Lacedaemonia since Spartans wrote no history prior to the Hellenistic period. However, many ancient customs he reports had been long abandoned so he never actually saw what he wrote about, leading to myths about Spartan egalitarianism.
What does the dialogue On the E at Delphi explain about Apollo's temple?
This text explains how the letter E written on Apollo's temple originated from five genuine wise men rather than seven tyrants who used political power to be incorporated into the list. The dialogue features Ammonius a Platonic philosopher and teacher of Plutarch alongside Lambrias his brother.
When was Erasmus of Rotterdam's translation of the Moralia first published in Basel?
Several chapters appeared in England until the complete Moralia with eight chapters was published in August 1514 in Basel by Johann Froben. Five editions of Erasmus's translation were printed by Froben between 1514 and 1520 ensuring wide dissemination across Europe.