Characterization through animals: the case of Plutarch’s Artaxerxes: part I

Abstract

This paper is the fi rst part of three dealing with the subject of characterization through animals in Plutarch’s Lives. It argues that beasts have important narra tolo gical signifi cance in the biographies, namely, to shed light on the character of the hero through their association with the realm of passions within the human soul. The text chosen to demonstrate this claim is Plutarch’s most neglected biography, the Life of the Persian king Artaxerxes.