Timon of Athens ( ; grc, Τίμων ὁ Ἀθηναῖος, Tímōn ho Athēnaîos, , ) was a citizen of

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

whose reputation for

misanthropy Misanthropy is the general hatred, dislike, distrust or contempt of the human species, human behavior or human nature. A misanthrope or misanthropist is someone who holds such views or feelings. The word's origin is from the Greek words μῖσ ...

grew to legendary status. According to the historian

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...

, Timon lived during the era of the

Peloponnesian War The Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC) was an ancient Greek war fought between Athens and Sparta and their respective allies for the hegemony of the Greek world. The war remained undecided for a long time until the decisive intervention of th ...

(431–404 BC).

Overview

According to

Lucian Lucian of Samosata, '; la, Lucianus Samosatensis ( 125 – after 180) was a Hellenized Syrian satirist, rhetorician and pamphleteer Pamphleteer is a historical term for someone who creates or distributes pamphlets, unbound (and therefore ...

, Timon was the wealthy son of Echecratides who lavished his money on flattering friends. When his funds ran out, the friends deserted him and Timon was reduced to working in the fields. One day, he found a pot of gold and soon his fair-weather friends were back. This time, he drove them away with dirt clods. Both

Aristophanes Aristophanes (; grc, Ἀριστοφάνης, ; c. 446 – c. 386 BC), son of Philippus, of the deme In Ancient Greece, a deme or ( grc, δῆμος, plural: demoi, δημοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Athens and other city-states ...

and Plato Comicus mention Timon as an angry despiser of mankind, who held

Alcibiades Alcibiades ( ; grc-gre, Ἀλκιβιάδης; 450 – 404 BC) was a prominent Athenian statesman, orator, and general. He was the last of the Alcmaeonidae, which fell from prominence after the Peloponnesian War. He played a major role in t ...

in high regard because he correctly believed Alcibiades would someday harm Athens. another source is

Parallel Lives Plutarch's ''Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans'', commonly called ''Parallel Lives'' or ''Plutarch's Lives'', is a series of 48 biographies of famous men, arranged in pairs to illuminate their common moral virtues or failings, probably writt ...

in which Plutarch mentioned briefly Timon as the one who represented in Greek writer's works. he says: "Timon was an Athenian, and lived about the time of the Peloponnesian War, as may be gathered from the plays of Aristophanes and Plato. For he is represented in their comedies as peevish and misanthropical; but though he avoided and repelled all intercourse with men, ... ."

Cultural references

*In ''

Lysistrata ''Lysistrata'' ( or ; Attic Greek: , ''Lysistrátē'', "Army Disbander") is an ancient Greek comedy by Aristophanes, originally performed in classical Athens in 411 BC. It is a comic account of a woman's extraordinary mission to end the Peloponne ...

'' (vv.809-820), the chorus of old women claim that although Timon hated men, he was friendly and courteous towards women. *

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the estab ...

, in his treatise on friendship ''

De Amicitia ''Laelius de Amicitia'' (or simply ''De Amicitia'') is a treatise on friendship ('' amicitia'') by the Roman statesman and author Marcus Tullius Cicero, written in 44 BC. Background The work is written as a dialogue between prominent figures of ...

'', refers to Timon of Athens when discussing how friendship creeps into the lives of everyone, even those who fiercely shun society.M. Tullius Cicero, Laelius de Amicitia, §87 *According to

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...

(''

Geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

'' XVII.9), after his defeat at

Actium Actium or Aktion ( grc, Ἄκτιον) was a town on a promontory in ancient Acarnania at the entrance of the Ambraciot Gulf, off which Octavian gained his celebrated victory, the Battle of Actium, over Antony and Cleopatra, on September 2, 31& ...

(2 September 31 BC),

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the autoc ...

built a retreat at the end of a mole of land projecting into the harbor of Alexandria which he named the Timonium, after Timon of Athens, as Antony considered himself to be, like Timon, forsaken by his friends, and desired to live the rest of his days in solitude. *The dialogue ''Timon or The Misanthrope'' by

is about Timon. *Timon is the inspiration for the

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

play ''

Timon of Athens ''Timon of Athens'' (''The Life of Tymon of Athens'') is a play written by William Shakespeare and probably also Thomas Middleton in about 1606. It was published in the ''First Folio'' in 1623. Timon lavishes his wealth on parasitic companion ...

''. *Timon is the

eponym An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

of the words Timonist, Timonism, Timonian, and Timonize. *

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish Satire, satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whig (British political party), Whigs, then for the Tories (British political party), Tories), poe ...

claims to maintain a different sort of misanthropy than Timon in a letter to

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early 18th century. An exponent of Augustan literature, ...

. *

William Saxey William Saxey or Saxei ( – 1612) was an English-born judge in Ireland of the late Elizabethan and early Stuart era. He was an unpopular and controversial figure with a reputation for corruption and misanthropy. Early career He was born in B ...

(died 1612), a judge noted for misanthropy, was called "Timon that endureth no man". *In Chapter III of ''

The Confidence-Man ''The Confidence-Man: His Masquerade'', first published in New York on April Fool's Day 1857, is the ninth book and final novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book was published on the exact day of the novel's setting. Centered on the ...

'',

Herman Melville Herman Melville (Name change, born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American people, American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance (literature), American Renaissance period. Among his bes ...

uses an unnamed bystander to underscore the madness of an uncharitable reprobate as an example that "might deter Timon." *In Charlotte Brontë's novel '' Villette'', the protagonist Lucy Snowe is called Timon by her friend Ginevra Fanshawe because of her cynical demeanor.

References

*Armstrong, A. Macc. "Timon of Athens - A Legendary Figure?", ''Greece & Rome'', 2nd Ser., Vol. 34, No. 1 (April 1987), pp. 7–11 *Graßl, Herbert. "Timon der Misanthrop, social distancing und die Gesellschaft Athens im 5. Jh. v. Chr.", in Rafał Matuszewski (Hrsg.), ''Being Alone in Antiquity. Greco-Roman Ideas and Experiences of Misanthropy, Isolation and Solitude''. de Gruyter, Berlin/Boston 2022, pp. 139–148. {{Authority control 5th-century BC Athenians Ancient Greek comedy