Plutarch's Originality in the Amatorius

Abstract

Plutarch's 'Amatorius' has previously been the focus of relatively few articles (Brenk 1988, Martin 1984, and 1978 in Betz pp. 442 ft.) and translations into English (Helmbold 1961, Russell 1993) or other modern European languages such as Flacelière's translation into French (1987. Perhaps this is because the 'Lives' generally have received more critical attention than the 'Moralia' and both the 'Lives' and the 'Moralia' have tended to be used more as a reference source for ancient historians than been studied for their own merits as works of literature or philosophy. Consequently several significant aspects of the 'Amatorius' have been overlooked or under-estimated previously. I hope that this work will bring more detailed critical attention to the 'Amatorius'. ... For the Greek text of the 'Amatorius' the Loeb edition by Helmbold (1961) was most frequently consulted. Use was also made of the editions of Hubert (1938) and Flacelière (1987). I would like to recommend Russell's 1993 translation ('Plutarch: Selected Essays and Dialogues'), not simply because it is the only recent translation available but also for its excellent notes and introduction. My thanks to all those scholars whose works have given me guidance and insight and to the Nine Ladies of Helicon, daughters of Memory, for moments of inspiration.