It is very practical to have this collection of Plutarch’s Lives focusing on Sparta presented together in one volume, and I find I’d much rather read Plutarch’s own texts than have them presented rehashed by contemporary scholars. I read in the new Preface that the Life of Agesilaus has been added to this Expanded Edition, which is great – though it would have been even better if the Life of Lysander had been added as well. I don’t see the point of leaving it out (other than selling more books of course).
Obviously there are good reasons for presenting the Lives by period and theme as is done in this Penguin Classics series, but there’s also a problematic side to presenting the individual Lives outside the context in which they were originally written, the Parallel Lives, as is also mentioned in the first Preface to this book. Still, it is commendable that this volume on Sparta has been made available, and it’s one I will return to. My favorite is the Life of Lycurgus, also because it is so basic to understanding the entire structure of Spartan society.
The translation flows well, though there were a few occasions where I was wondering what Plutarch’s original wording may have been. Likewise, the notes are mainly useful though in some instances seemed irritatingly superfluous (e.g. there’s a note added to a mention of "the traditional system of education" on p. 99, that simply says that this means the agoge!) The maps are good, and the same goes for the Historical Introduction to each of the Lives, though it seemed an odd choice to place all the different introductions together in the beginning of the book instead of in front of the respective biographies.
In addition to Lycurgus and Agesilaus, this volume includes the Lives of Agis and Cleomenes, as well as Plutarch’s Sayings of Spartans. Also included is the work on Spartan Society attributed to Xenophon, which adds a lot to its value as a resource. Plutarch’s sources are discussed in the Introduction to each of the Lives, and there’s a glossary as well as a list of Spartan kings. All in all a great book with some minor flaws. Understanding Sparta is important for the understanding both of our own history and as well the political history of a number of Greek states – in addition to being an endlessly fascinating subject in itself.




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