Parallel Lives

Plutarch's 'Parallel Lives' is a collection of 48 biographies of renowned men, divided into 23 pairs of one Greek and one Roman, along with four unpaired biographies.

Written at the beginning of the second century AD, the work aims to explore the influence of character on the lives and destinies of these historical figures.

Plutarch's focus is ethical, intending to illustrate which actions are noble and how character shapes the lives of individuals.

The biographies are structured to facilitate comparisons between the Greek and Roman subjects, highlighting their common moral virtues and failings.