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Xenophon’s Kyrou Amathia: Deceitful Narrative and The Birth of Tyranny

McCloskey, Benjamin Orion

Abstract Details

2012, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Greek and Latin.
The figure of Cyrus in the Cyropaideia has been generally understood to be a positive figure and has been seen as providing a model for leadership in either the domestic or political spheres. In recent years scholars have begun to question the assumption that Cyrus is a positive figure; in this dissertation, I provide two new frameworks for advancing an interpretation of the figure of Cyrus that sees him as a vicious figure and a model for avoidance, not imitation. I first argue that Cyrus fails to qualify as a good leader according to Socrates by applying the definitions of good leadership presented by Socrates in Xenophon's Memorabilia. Secondly, I argue that the narrator of the Cyropaideia, never before discussed as a figure in his own right, is an unreliable narrator whose biases have converged with those of Cyrus to present the positive image of Cyrus that has so pervasively dominated the readership of the text. I then take these two conclusions and use them to produce a new reading of several sections of the text. Focusing on Cyrus' interactions with close family members—his grandfather and his uncle—I argue that Cyrus' behavior can be consistently categorized as selfish, vicious, and utilitarian. His treatment of his family declines into open viciousness as he ultimately betrays his family. In the conclusion, I turn to Xenophon's motivations in writing the Cyropaideia in this esoteric way and argue that he is attempting to unconventionally solve the problem of competent, charming, capable and vicious young men, like Cyrus, who plague society.
Anthony Kaldellis, PhD (Advisor)
Tom Hawkins, PhD (Committee Member)
Richard Fletcher, PhD (Committee Member)
359 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • McCloskey, B. O. (2012). Xenophon’s Kyrou Amathia: Deceitful Narrative and The Birth of Tyranny [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1354721463

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • McCloskey, Benjamin. Xenophon’s Kyrou Amathia: Deceitful Narrative and The Birth of Tyranny. 2012. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1354721463.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • McCloskey, Benjamin. "Xenophon’s Kyrou Amathia: Deceitful Narrative and The Birth of Tyranny." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2012. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1354721463

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)