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Communication Dans Un Congrès Année : 2023

The tyrant and his advisers: an interesting discrepancy between narrative and comment in Diodorus (XIV, 8, 4 - 9, 5)

Résumé

In 403 BC, Dionysius the Elder, tyrant of Syracuse, faced a large-scale revolt. With the rebels in control of most of the city, Dionysius, entrenched in the citadel, convened his council of philoi to decide what to do in such a desperate situation. Three of his philoi gave three different advises, the last of which, followed by Dionysius, enabled him to reverse the situation and to stay at the power. References to this famous episode can be found in many sources : Diodorus, Isocrates, Livy, Plutarch, Elian, Philostratus and Procopius. This popularity can be explained by the fact that two of the pieces of advice given by Dionysius’ philoi became maxims encouraging leaders in danger not to give up their power, for « tyranny is a beautiful shroud » and one must only give it up when « dragged by the leg ». However, one of the versions reported by Diodorus (XIV, 8, 4 - 9, 5) makes it particularly interesting, because the scene of deliberation in the council is followed by a detailed account of the implementation and effects of the decision. Now, we notice that this account of the implementation does not fully match what was presented just before as the tyrant's final decision. In fact, while, according to Diodorus, Dionysius had sided with one particular adviser, Philistus, the following events suggest that the decision taken by the tyrant was in fact a sort of synthesis of the opinions of his advisers.
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Dates et versions

hal-04503746 , version 1 (13-03-2024)

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  • HAL Id : hal-04503746 , version 1

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Lucas Ego. The tyrant and his advisers: an interesting discrepancy between narrative and comment in Diodorus (XIV, 8, 4 - 9, 5). Text, Commentary and Interpretation: Problems of Commenting on Ancient and Medieval Texts, Oct 2023, Yerevan, Armenia. ⟨hal-04503746⟩
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