Xenophon, c. 430 - 354

“I would advise you to undertake a regular course of History and Poetry in both languages [Greek and Latin]. In Greek, go first thro’ the Cyropaedia, and then read Herodotus, Thucydides, Xenophon’s Hellenus and Anabasis…”

– Thomas Jefferson, President of the United States, in a letter written to his grandson Francis Wayles Eppes (October 6, 1820).

Biography

Xenophon was an Athenian military leader and author, who, along with Plato and Aristophanes, remains one of our chief literary sources regarding the way of life of Socrates, his deeds as well as his speeches. Unlike Aristophanes and Plato, however, Xenophon was also a man of action who embarked on a military career, which he… [Read More]

Introduction

However “prosaic” his writings appear to be, philosophic themes are never absent from Xenophon’s writings. With supreme artfulness and taste, he shows how philosophic questions emerge directly from life. Xenophon offers us an unrivalled example of how to be philosophic while “out in the world.” [Read More]

Major Works