Hieron

This article argues that in the Hiero, Xenophon skilfully combines elements of wisdom literature, epinician poetry, the Mirror of Tyrants and logoi Sōkratikoi. In doing so, he pursues two objectives. One is to link his reflections on leadership to respected and influential traditions in order to give his views additional weight and render them interesting for a wider audience. The second objective is to respond to Plato's challenge to the traditional way of doing politics and, more specifically, the view that it is irremediable. For these reasons, this paper attempts to reconstruct the influence of wisdom literature (hypothēkai, Seven Sages), the Mirror of Tyrants (Isocrates), epinician poetry (Simonides, Pindar) and Plato's dialogues on the Hiero.

This paper explores the melic poets’ take on art and its
sponsors. Since much has been written on the relationship of epinician
poets with their patrons, this paper broadens the focus of enquiry to
include other melic genres and, in addition to the verbal, to look at the
visual arts as well, i.e. melic representations of communities that sponsor songs and of communities or individuals that sponsor other art-forms such as sculpture, architecture, and precious objects. Taking as starting point Xenophon’s depiction of Simonides in Hiero, I discuss epigrams XXVII and XXVIII Page and relevant testimonia that show Simonides’ keen interest in Athenian dithyrambic contests; Bacchylides’ Ode 19, probably composed for the Great Dionysia; Pindar’s Pythian 7, Paean 8, and fragment 3 in conjunction with Homeric Hymn to Apollo 281-99, Herodotus 1.31, Cicero, De oratore 2. 86. 352-353, [Plutarch] Consolatio ad Apollonium, and Pausanias – all of which offer precious insights into Pindar’s views on sponsoring monumental sculpture and architecture; and Bacchylides’ description of the golden tripods that Hieron offered to Apollo in Ode 3. On the basis of this evidence I argue that whatever the nature and the range of remuneration of poets and artists may have been, melic rhetoric shows that it was the relationship of poets, artists and their sponsors with the gods that was ultimately at stake. This is why both the poetry and the traditions about Simonides, Pindar and Bacchylides privilege the divine favour that poets, artists and patrons alike either obtained or were hoping to obtain by offering masterpieces to the gods.

Analyzing the occurrences of Typho's myth in Pindaric poetry (Pythian 1, Pythian 3, Nemean 1, Olympian 6), I argue that the way Pindar mentions, recalls or hints at the monster which lies beneath Mount Aitna, aims to support Hieron's political propaganda, and to reassure the Sicilian and Campanian settlers often frightened by Mount Aitna's eruptions.

En la primera conversación de la República, mantenida entre Sócrates y el anciano Céfalo, este reconoce que teme la cercanía de la muerte debido a los mitos sobre el Hades que cuentan los poetas. La pasión del miedo hace que los hombres olviden lo que es justo. En el caso de los
guardianes y futuros gobernantes esto es más grave que en ningún otro ciudadano. Para combatir este riesgo, Platón desarrolla la crítica de la poesía, de la educación de los niños y de los guardianes y las tres pruebas de los candidatos a gobernantes con el fin de fijar en el alma qué es lo temible, de modo que el miedo a la muerte no haga que olviden lo justo. Por todo esto, analizaré las relaciones entre la valentía, la vergüenza, la memoria y la justicia.