Plutarch's Lives, Vol. 1

Nonfiction | Biography | Adult | Published in 100

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Chapters 30-31Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 30 Summary: “Pyrrhus”

Plutarch begins his biography of Pyrrhus by recounting the myths and history surrounding his family, the ruling family of Epirus, which traces its descent to the hero Achilles and his son Neoptolemus. When Pyrrhus is still a child, his father, King Aeacides of Epirus, is expelled by the Molossians, who replace him as king with Neoptolemus. Pyrrhus is saved, however, by some of his father’s friends. He is brought up by King Glaucias of Illyria, who educates him and restores him to his rightful throne when he is 12. Plutarch describes Pyrrhus’s unusual appearance, especially his irregular teeth. His right foot was also believed to possess healing qualities.

When Pyrrhus is 17, Neoptolemus tries to seize Epirus while Pyrrhus is away. Not having the resources to drive Neoptolemus out, Pyrrhus goes with his brother-in-law, Demetrius, to fight against Ptolemy in Egypt, where he distinguishes himself as a great soldier. In Egypt, he marries Antigone, one of Ptolemy’s daughters, who helps him get the men and money he needs to win back his kingdom. Pyrrhus initially agrees to share the kingdom with Neoptolemus, but he eventually kills him when he discovers that he is plotting to assassinate him.

Now the sole ruler of Epirus, Pyrrhus fights a war against his brother-in-law Demetrius in Macedon, with whom he has had a falling out. He proves himself a very skillful general and earns much acclaim. After a few nearly successful attempts, Pyrrhus manages to surprise Demetrius and forces him to flee. He briefly declares himself king of Macedonia, but soon makes peace with Demetrius and returns to Epirus.

Bored without a war to fight, Pyrrhus leaps at the opportunity to invade Italy when the people of Tarentum ask for his help against the Romans. He hopes that taking Italy will enable him to expand into Sicily and North Africa. Though he loses much of his army in a storm, Pyrrhus reaches Tarentum and has some success against the Romans, though the Romans fight well, and his victories come at a heavy cost. He sues for peace, but the old Roman aristocrat Appius Claudius persuades the Romans to deny his terms. Pyrrhus fights the Romans again at Asculum. He wins the battle, but his losses are so heavy that he remarks that one more such victory will ruin him.

Pyrrhus puts off his war with Rome to sail to Sicily to fight against the Carthaginians. He is very successful there but becomes so tyrannical that the people of Sicily soon turn against him. He is then called back to Italy, where he steadily loses ground to the Romans. He returns to Epirus, leads an army against Macedonia, and drives out their king.

Pyrrhus advances through Greece. He fails to take Sparta but is able to enter Argos. As he is advancing into Argos, however, he sees what he believes to be a fatal omen and tries to retreat. The Argives take advantage of the confusion and attack. In the chaos, an old woman drops a rock on the back of Pyrrhus’s neck, knocking him unconscious. The Argives, seeing Pyrrhus down, leap upon him and cut off his head. Plutarch reflects that Pyrrhus’s ignoble end came about because he dove into campaigns without a clear plan of action.

Chapter 31 Summary: “Caius Marius”

Caius (or Gaius) Marius comes from a good but poor family. Despite his humble background, he has all the makings of a good soldier and begins serving in the military when Scipio Africanus besieges Numantia. He fights so bravely that the general invites him to dine with him.

Scipio inspires Marius to enter public life. As tribune, he seeks to decrease the authority of the patricians, the old Roman aristocracy. He is so fair in the policies he pursues that he is esteemed by the plebeians as well as the patricians. He continues moving through the political hierarchy, though some accuse him of using bribes to secure his elections.

After serving a term as praetor, he is sent to Spain and effectively clears the land of robbers. Back in Rome, Marius gets more popular because of his hard-working and spirited nature, qualities that make up for his lack of wealth or eloquence. He is even able to make a good marriage to a member of the patrician Julian family. Marius is then selected to serve as lieutenant in Metellus’s war against Jugurtha. There, he is so successful and popular with the troops that Metellus grows jealous of him. Marius gets elected consul by promising to bring an end to the war with Jugurtha. Metellus is very upset that Marius will get credit for the war he fought, though in the end, it is not even Marius, but Sylla who captures Jugurtha. Thus begins Marius’s rivalry with Sylla.

Rome’s attention is diverted by an invasion of Germanic and Celtic warriors from the north. Marius is reelected to the consulship and sent to deal with the invaders. During this campaign, Marius enacts important military reforms. He marches north and, following a tough campaign, defeats the invaders. By the end of this war, Marius has served as consul five times. Though elected consul a sixth time, Marius is not as capable in peacetime as in war and shows that what he really loves is gaining power and position. His conduct in his sixth consulship turns many against him. Among his many offenses, Marius falls in with the controversial Saturninus, and with his help seeks to make problematic changes to the Roman constitution. After his consulship ends, Marius lives quietly for a while, hoping for a war to break out so that he can regain his popularity.

Some years later, while Marius’s rival Sylla is consul, Marius tries to get placed in command of the army instead of Sylla. This leads to open fighting between Marius and Sylla, and Marius is forced to flee from Rome. Abandoned, he hides in a cave in the countryside. He is discovered and captured, but just as he is to be killed an inhuman voice terrifies his assailant. Marius’s captors then pity him and help him escape to Cercina.

When Marius learns that the consul Cinna has been driven out of the city, he seizes his chance. With an army of refugees and supporters, he joins Cinna and helps him march on Rome. Marius and Cinna retake the city and declare themselves consuls. They then spend five days slaughtering their enemies. Plutarch describes Marius’s atrocities in detail, including his murder of the famous statesman Mark Antony.

News soon arrives that Sylla is marching on Rome with a great army. Marius is chosen consul for a seventh time to deal with him, but Marius is so anxious to face Sylla that he falls ill and dies.

Chapters 30-31 Analysis

Pyrrhus and Caius Marius, on the whole, are presented very negatively by Plutarch. Though Plutarch does not deny that both men were extremely capable generals—he even compares Pyrrhus to Alexander the Great—he strongly objects to their moral qualities and motivations, exploring The Influence of Character on History.

Pyrrhus fights war after war because he is too restless to maintain peace. The portrait of Pyrrhus painted by Plutarch is the portrait of a man who does not understand why he wants what he wants. In one characteristically Plutarchan anecdote, Plutarch describes an exchange between Pyrrhus and his friend Cineas. Cineas presses Pyrrhus about his plans to conquer Italy, Sicily, and Macedon, finally asking Pyrrhus what he intends to do once he has completed his conquests. When Pyrrhus responds that he will simply live at ease after he has finished everything he plans, Cineas asks him what is preventing him from living at ease now—a question that Pyrrhus is unable to answer.

Marius, similarly, pursues power and glory for their own sake. He is not a true patriot, at least not the way Plutarch describes him. Marius shows again and again that he is willing to endanger his city of Rome—even invade it with an army—when doing so suits his purpose. Like Pyrrhus, Marius is an excellent general but a problematic leader. Indeed, Marius’s career demonstrates that the qualities that make a good general do not always translate into politics, with “[h]is passion for distinction” making him overly complacent while “that undaunted presence of mind he always showed in battle against the enemy forsook him when he was to address the people” (568).

The natural talents of Pyrrhus and Marius are likewise undermined by their lack of insight into themselves. At the end of his biography of Marius, Plutarch compares Marius’s death to those of several notable philosophers. On their deathbeds, wise men like Plato and Antipater of Tarsus have made a point of being thankful for the happiness and fortune they enjoyed throughout their lives; Marius, on the other hand, lamented that he was going to die without achieving everything he wanted—even though “he had now lived seventy years, and was the first man that ever was chosen seven times consul, and had an establishment and riches sufficient for many kings” (583). Pyrrhus and Marius thus act as cautionary tales for Plutarch’s readers: If one does not know what they want and why they want it, nothing will ever be enough.