The lash of ambition

In this volume, various aspects of Plutarch's view of 'philotimia' are analysed in detail and compared with the position of several authors of the 'Second Sophistic'. This confrontation challenges the often implicit and unquestioned consensus that Plutarch occupies as a singular figure 'his own space' apart from the 'Second Sophistic'. The broad approach and focus of this volume includes problems of textual criticism, comparative analysis, careful semantic studies of the occurrences of the term 'philotimia' in the different authors, moral-philosophical reflection on ambition, a study of philosophy as a field of honour, and the dynamics of the author's own 'philotimia' placed in the contemporary cultural context. The novel assessments of the different authors that are presented in this collection contribute to a proper understanding of their own (rhetorical/philosophical) culture and of their cultural environment. As a result, the monograph will be of interest to those studying Plutarch and the history of philosophy, rhetoric and the 'Second Sophistic'.