Vorbele de duh ale spartanilor

Plutarh brings together wit from Sparta’s rulers and common folk. Licurg and Cleomene speak in these pages. So do Leonida and his wife, Gorgo. Agesilaos and Lysandros appear too. Other men and women have no names. Their words give us a view of ancient Sparta.

These sayings show an ideal of Spartan life. Admirers like Platon and Xenofon helped shape it. These Spartans prize freedom and courage. They judge with a strict eye. They value their duty to the city. They keep old ways and lead plain lives. They shun luxury. This view draws on Sparta’s wars with Persia and Athens. It recalls how Sparta stood up to Philip of Macedon. Sparta defied Alexander of Macedon too. Yet some sayings show flaws in these heroes. They show the old city’s more human side.

Liviu Mihail Iancu worked from the ancient Greek text. He translated it and wrote notes. He also wrote a study to introduce it. This edition has drawings by Mihail Coşuleţu. They are in black and white.