Reading Plutarch’s Women: Moral Judgement in the Moralia and Some Lives*

Plutarch has two distinct bodies of work: the Moralia and the Lives. Increasingly, however, questions about the unity of Plutarch’s work as a whole have been raised, and it has become of some concern to scholars of ancient biography to establish the level of philosophical content in the Lives. A comparative study of the women of the Lives and those in the Moralia may provide some insight into Plutarch’s greater philosophical project and narrative aims. Plutarch’s writings on and for women in the Conjugalia praecepta, Mulierum virtutes, Amatorius, De Iside et Osiride, and Consolatio ad uxorem lays a firm groundwork for the role of Woman in society and the marital unit. The language in these works is consistent with the language used to describe women in the Lives, where historical women appear as exempla for the moral improvement of his female students. This case study of five prominent women in the Lives reveals an uncomfortable probability: Plutarch presents women in the Lives in accordance with the principles set out in the Moralia and uses certain concepts to guide his readers towards a judgement of the exempla that agrees with his views on the ideal Woman. Key-Words: Plutarch, Exempla, Women, Moral education, Virtue.


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Ploutarchos, n.s., 15 (2018) 75-96 I n the last two decades, the relationship between Plutar ch's Lives and his Moralia has increasingly occupied scholars. Se ve ral publications have approached the topic in varying ways. Duff has shown that the Lives has a strong implicit mo ralistic purpose, while the more recent collection edited by Nikolaidis has ma de significant contributions to the stu dy of the complex interplay between the two bodies of work 1 . The collection contains five essays on themes relating to women, including marriage, a pe ren nially popular topic. Elsewhere, discussions of the women that feature so prominently in both bodies of work have been relatively scarce. In some ways, this is not surprising. Plutarch is a remarkably versatile author and philosopher, who offers us a broad and complex range of texts to analyse.
Women do, however, occupy an im portant space within Plutarch's phi lo sophy and he devoted enough time to dis cussions of womanhood, virtue and fe mi ninity to warrant dedicated study of their place in his conceptual world.
Five extant texts in the Moralia are especially relevant to the understanding of Plutarch's Woman: Conjugalia prae cepta, Mulierum virtutes, Con sola tio ad uxorem, Amatorius, and De Isi de et Osiride. We can add a sixth if we include the spurious Lacaenarum apoph thegmata 2 . As for the women in the Lives, there are too many to mention. This paper focuses on five of the most wellknown: Octavia, Cornelia, Cleopatra, Olympias, and Aspasia. I have chosen these five women not only because of their reputations, but because of their differences in class, culture and social sta tus. This choice is a deliberate attempt to apply intersectionality theory to the work of one of the most prolific and generically diverse authors of the ancient world.
The breadth of Plutarch's extant cor pus provides us a rare opportunity to study the characterization of women across a number of genres with marked ly different content, context and aims. The sheer variety often makes it par ticu larly difficult to reconcile what so metimes seems like contradictory views. We know far too little still of the place of women in Plutarch's con ceptual world. Scholarship on the topic has yielded results ranging from Walcot's excessively negative assess ment of Plutarch's views on women to Niko laidis' rather optimistic analysis that Plu tarch was, in fact, a protofeminist 3 . While I disagree with Nikolaidis' view on the feminism of Plutarch, it also seems un likely that he was wholly negative towards women as a category. It is my view that in reality, his interactions with women were varied and informed by ideology, his philosophical views, and a number of other factors we could deduce (if only in part) from his work. Intersectionality theory suggests that it is perhaps unreasonable, and certainly un fair, to treat women as a monolithic category which can be studied as such 4 . Instead, it suggests an approach that con siders women at the intersection of oppression(s) including (but not li mit ed to) gender, class, ethnicity and race, geo po litical circumstance, sexua lity and so forth 5 . This paper will discuss the language Plutarch uses in the Mo ra lia in comparison with the lan guage used to describe five 3 A. G. Nikolaidis, "Plutarch on Women and Marriage", WS, 110 (1997) " Mediterranean Review, 4 (2011) 148. 4 Rabinowitz notes that it has long been a tendency in classical scholarship to treat 'women' as "some preexistent singular entity". In recent scholarship, especially that of feminist classicists, much work has been done to abolish this idea and move towards a more complex understanding of women in the ancient world. Even so, studies of homoeroticism tend to focus on male homosexuality and especially pederasty, while similar studies of lesbianism are in short supply; Rabinowitz argues that feminist classicists have turned to gender studies, because "it is safer; by never studying women without men, such studies avoid the specter of lesbianism"; N.S. Rabinowitz, "Introduction", in N. wo men in the Lives. It is, above all, an attempt to further our understanding of Plu tarch's characterization of women the Lives, not only in relation to men but in relation to other women 6 . It is unlikely that we will learn anything new about the women themselves. Instead, using intersectionality as a theo retical framework, I suggest that we might gain valuable insight into Plu tarch's conscious and subconscious treat ment of women, and therefore the complexity of gendered oppression in the ancient world.

Women in the Moralia
Before we can address the characte ri sation of women in the Lives, we should attempt to formulate some idea of ideal Conjugalia praecepta, Plutarch says the aim of the collection is to "render [husband and wife] gentle and amiable toward one another" and to help them attain har mo ny in their marriage "through reason, concord, and philosophy" (διὰ λόγου καὶ ἁρμονίας καὶ φιλοσοφίας; 138cd) 15 . The onus of harmony falls almost squa rely on the bride, however, who is told to eat a quince before bed "that the delight from lips and speech should be pleasant and harmonious at the outset" (138d) 16 . The husband is advised to be patient with his wife's "irritability and unpleasantness" (table 1), because she will likely grow out of it (138e). Precept 14 rather ominously suggests that the wife "should have no feeling of her own" but should match her mood to that of her husband (139f) 17 .
Keeping her mood in check is very important, thus Plutarch advises that she put aside her bad temper and appear "accommodating, inoffensive, and agre eable" (141b) to her husband. Precept 27 invokes Hera in a further attempt to persuade the bride that it is her duty to be pleasant at all times (141f). If she is too disagreeable, her husband would be right to seek pleasure elsewhere. Plutarch supplies the maxim "I cannot have the society of the same woman as both wife and paramour" for the husband whose wife is too grumpy for his liking (140b). The precept reads as a tacit condoning of extramarital affairs for men in 'extreme' cases. As such it stands in contrast to his argument in the Amatorius that women are capable of both erotic love and philia, and that the conjugal relationship is the most sacred and beneficial union.
Of course, women who live with uncompromising men don't have the same re course. They are in all cases expected to be faithful and modest. Precept 18 recommends that the wife should always be receptive of her husband's sexual ad vances, though she should never take the initiative in the bedroom (140d), and Precept 39 suggests that the wife use the bedroom as a means to avoid and resolve 15 Tsouvala sees harmony in marriage as a blending of sexual pleasure and reason. She argues that love and marriage in Plutarch is a harmonising political relationship that transcends "ancestral feuds, philosophical factions, local competitions, and any type of discord in the polis and the empire." G. Tsouvala, "Love and Marriage," in M. Beck (ed.), A Companion to Plutarch, Malden, 2014, pp. 191206. 16 Goessler, in her analysis of Coniug. praec., says a woman's husband "should be her main concern". L. Goessler, "Advice to the Bride and Groom: Plutarch gives a detailed account of his views on marriage", in Pomeroy, 1999, p. 99. 17 Beneker also touches on this theme when discussing the behaviour of Porcia in the Brutus.
He argues that the wife can be a good partner if she shares in her husband's joys and troubles without being overbearing or overly curious. It is the husband's choice how much he wishes to share with her, and she should respect that; J. Beneker, "Plutarch on the Role of Eros in a Marriage," in Nikolaidis, 2008, pp. 689700. conflict (143e). She should, however, be careful to appear neither too eager nor too unaffectionate towards her husband.
In Mulierum virtutes Plutarch relates the story of the women of Ceos, who were so wellbehaved that there wasn't a single case of adultery or seduction in 700 years (249de), implying that intemperance is ultimately the fault of women.
A good sense of shame is helpful for keeping women modest and temperate. McInerney notes that a large number of the exempla in Mulierum virtutes revolve around women's bodies, and often their virtuous action is a result of shame for what is improper 18 . Indeed, in the case of their bodies, Plutarch says a virtuous woman should become even more modest in the nude (Coniug. praec. 144b), and recalls the tale of the women of Miletus, who were prone to suicide until they were threatened with disgrace: they would be carried nude through the agora to their funeral (Mulier. virt. 249cd; cf. Apophth. Lac. 242c). The thought of that shame prevented them from committing any further suicides. Similarly, the women of Egypt, deprived of luxuries, stay at ho me all day, and Plutarch suggests that this would be the case with most women (Coniug. praec. 142c). The list of things women aren't supposed to have or wear is extensive. Plutarch mentions expensive clothes and jewellery, gold, emeralds, scar let, goldembroidered shoes, bracelets, anklets, purple, pearls 19 , and silk (table 1) 20 . These luxuries are likely to anger their husbands, like bulls who are angered at the sight of red (144e), and therefore Plutarch advises the bride to set aside her indulgences in favour of household har mony. The husband is also advised not to indulge, at least not in the presence of his wife 21 .
Staying at home means that women's primary function is domestic. We see this play out in the Mulierum virtutes, where Plutarch tells the stories of many virtuous women acting in domestic contexts. Though their actions might at times take place outside of the home, they are always in service of harmony or in support of their husbands or fathers 22 . The Trojan women make the decision that it is time to settle in Italy (243f), and the Phocian women vote in favour of the men's proposal to die should the battle against the Thessalians be lost (244be Helv. 14.2 on "womanly" weakness; Xen. Oec. 7.14 on temperance as a virtue. 21 Coniug. praec. 140b,140c,144d,145b. 22 Cf. Stadter, 1999, pp. 17779, 182.

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Ploutarchos, n.s., 15 (2018) 75-96 women act in defense of their chastity (245c, 249f, 250a, 253de), or with the help of men (258ef, 261ac). At times Plutarch ascribes this agency to divine inspiration, as in the case of Telesilla and the women of Argos (245e). In doing so he devalues the initiative of women and transposes it instead to something beyond their control. What results is a picture of women as vessels for the actions of others.
Only in extraordinary circumstances does Plutarch condone women acting in the public or political sphere. One revealing anecdote is the story of Valeria and Cloelia relayed at Mulierum virtutes 250cf. Plutarch seems genuinely caught between commending them for their bravery after escaping Porsena's camp and admonishing them for their foolishness for meddling in men's affairs. After all, at the end he tells the reader that the women were sent back to Porsena's camp. Their escape ultimately would have ruined the reputations of the men who offered them as captives in the first place. Women who take public action in the political sphere usually meet an untimely or unpleasant end 23 . Lampsace dies of an illness shortly after her act of bravery, intervening on behalf of the Phocians because her father is away (255bc). Polycrite, though acting in private, suffers the same fate (254f). Aretaphila, however, gets extra special treatment. She uses spells and potions to topple a brutal and murderous tyrant and as a result she gets tortured (255f257d). Plutarch lauds her not only for bearing her punishment courageously, but also for declining a seat in government and instead spending the rest of her life "quietly at the loom" when the whole affair is over 24 .
Aretaphila is a particularly enlighten ing case, because Plutarch disapproves of the use of spells and potions in the strongest terms (table 1) 25 . In Conjuga lia praecepta Plutarch warns that women are especially prone to supersti tion, much like their wombs are prone to developing cysts. They should avoid using φίλτρα ('love potions') and γοητεία ('witchcraft'), unless they want to have power over "dullwitted and degenerate fools" (139a). Women who catch men's attention are easily suspected of using φάρμακα ('drugs' or potions; 141c), but if they're welleducated, they will be able to prove that they have no need 23 McInerney discusses the resolution for women who possess andreia, arguing that the best they can hope for is a noble death; for magic 26 . Along with magic comes out landish superstitions (ξέναις δεισι δαι μονίαις; 140d) and parti ci pa tion in strange rituals. Plutarch especially disap pro ves of association with Dionysos and Cy bele. Instead of relying on magic, a woman should rely on her charm and character, which will garner respect from her husband and ensure a good repu ta tion.
Plutarch's idea of what a woman should be is evident also in his writing on grief 27 . He advises her to grieve neither excessively nor publically, but instead focus on the happy (if short) life of the deceased. These are the recommendations he gives to his wi fe Timoxena in the Consolatio ad uxorem (608d610d). Elsewhere, he prai ses women for grieving virtuously. In the Mulierum virtutes Camma is lauded for not grieving ostentatiously (257f258c), as is Timocleia (259e), and a great number of the Lacaenarum apophthegmata praise Spartan mothers for the pride they show when their sons die in battle, rather than grief for having lost them 28 .
The image of ideal womanhood that Plutarch creates in the Moralia (see table 1) suggests that women are capable of achieving a sta te of virtue on par with men, but that their virtue should be performed in accor dan ce with gender roles. Plutarch's wo men are restricted primarily to the do mestic sphere and must always act in a suppor tive role for the men in their lives. In the Lives we see the application of this ideal. That is not to say Plutarch's women are not complex, on the contrary, they are of ten multidimensional characters in their own right.

Women's virtue and vice in the Lives
Plutarch' methodology in the Mulierum virtutes is similar to that of the Lives. He argues that comparison is the best tool through which to judge virtue and vice in both men and women (243c): And actually it is not possible to learn better the similarity and the difference between the vir tues of men and of women from any other source than by putting lives beside lives and actions be side actions, like great works of art, and considering whether the magnificence of Semiramis has the same character and pattern as that of Sesostris, or the intel ligence of Tanaquil   This comes with the caveat that virtues are different in different people because of nature and custom, and it is on this basis also that Plutarch examines the virtues and vices of men and women in the Lives. In the following section, we'll consider the characterisation of five women based on the criteria from the Moralia (table 2). Two women are praised for their virtue without reservation. Cornelia was highly educated Roman nobility, the daughter of Scipio Africanus and mother of Tiberius and Caius Gracchus. Much like Cornelia, Octavia's reputation for virtue would become intimately entwined with the men in her life. She was also a Roman noblewoman, the sister of Octavian (who would later become Caesar Augustus) and wife to Mark Antony. The other three women also have something in common, as Blomqvist has observed 29 . Aspasia was a metoikos and hetaira in Athens and the mistress of Pericles. Olympias was the zealous Macedonian queen, wife to Philip II and mother of Alexander the Great. Cleopatra was an Egyptian ruler of Greek descent in the middle of one of the most infamous wars in Roman history. Not one of them was considered truly Greek or Roman 30 .

Cornelia
Plutarch wastes no time telling his rea der that Cornelia, mother of the Gracchi, is σώφρων, the greatest testa ment to a woman's virtue. He praises her for loving her children (φιλότεκνον), being magnanimous (μεγαλόψυχον) and the exceptional education she gave Ti berius and Caius, which greatly con tributed to their virtue (TG 1.45). As they got older, Plutarch suggests that Cornelia continued to guide the Gracchi in their political careers. Her reputation was so untarnished that Caius was able to use it against his enemies. One particularly harsh example is Caius' response to a man who was accused of pederasty: "all Rome knows that Cornelia refrained from being with men longer than you have, though you are a man" (CG 4.4). Cornelia was wellknown for her virtue and temperance, and Plutarch says that she declined offers from other suitors to focus on raising her children. 29 Blomqvist notes that Plutarch treats Aspasia, Olympias and Cleopatra as outsiders and barbarians, highlighting the aspects of their characters that were nonGreek; K. Blomqvist, 1997, p. 82. 30

Octavia
Octavia is similarly praised for her character. Like Cornelia, she doesn't appe ar too often in the narrative. Like Cor nelia too, Plutarch ends his Life with her. Octavia's role is somewhat different, because she appears first and foremost in the context of the conjugal union, a major theme in the Life of Antony. In fact, Octavia was married to Antony to facilitate and preserve the peace betwe en him and Augustus. The very first thing Plutarch tells us about her is that Au gus tus was incredibly fond of her and that she was "a wonder of a woman" (Ant. 31.23). Octavia is praised for her beauty, intelligence and dignity (31.2), characteristics that should attract Antony and bring about peace. She did her job well (35.24), mediating between her brother and husband at certain points in the Life to avert war and even getting them to trade soldiers 31 . She also looked after Antony's children by his previous wife, Fulvia, while they were married (54.13).
After Antony abandoned her in favour of his mistress, Octavia re main ed devoted to him. She refused to leave his house until Antony himself sent orders that she do so and lobbied her brother for peace on behalf of her husband. Her reputation was so pu re that she made Antony look even worse for treating her so cruelly (54.13), and she was loved by the people of Rome and Athens. After Antony's death, she took care of all his children, even those he had with Cleopatra, and married them into noble families who eventually became emperors of Rome (87.12; 87.4). Octavia played her part in the marital unit well, but there was always one thing in her way: Antony's love for Cleopatra.

Cleopatra
Plutarch has much to say about Cleopatra. He undoubtedly saw her as one of the great influences on the course of Antony's life, and he explicitly refers 31 Women's role as peacekeepers and mediators are central to Plutarch's conception of the relationship between the sexes; Octavia takes on this role in the Antony in opposition to Cleopatra. See also Mulier. virt. 246c, where the Celtic women arbitrate between factions. As a result of their fairness the women were consulted on political matters henceforth. Several other passages in this text highlight the importance of women's support; cf. e.g. 246f247a, 249a, 254ab.
to Antony's passion for Cleopatra as a "dire evil" (Ant. 36.1), which destroyed whatever good was left in him. When he introduces her to the narrative, the very first thing he says is that Antony's love for Cleopatra was the "crowning evil" of his life (25.1). Beneker argues that it is Antony's lack of selfcontrol that ultimately caused his ruin 32 , and while this may be partly true, it is hard to deny that Plutarch places at least some of the blame on Cleopatra. When Antony abandons the Battle of Actium, Plutarch writes that he "hastened after the woman who had already ruined (ἀπολωλεκυῖαν) him, and would make his ruin still more complete (προσαπολοῦσαν)" (66.5). Des pi te such harsh words, Cleopatra is a com plex character. Plutarch tells us that she was a good conversationalist and prai ses her δεινότητα and πανουργίαν (25.2). He could be referring to her 'subtlety' and 'cleverness' (as Perrin translates in the Loeb edition of the Life of Antony), but could also mean that she is 'shrewd' and 'forceful'. Only a few paragraphs later he describes her as unrestrained and bold, so perhaps the ambiguity is intentional 33 . He goes on to say that conversing with her was charm ing and that she knew many languages. Education was a sign of nobility and virtue 34 , and thus one might be forgiven for expecting a largely positive portrait of an eloquent ruler.
However, Cleopatra is frequently in competition with Octavia. In addition to her linguistic prowess, she is κάλλος -either noble, beautiful, or both (27.2). Plutarch describes Octavia as κάλλος as well, but he makes a distinction between the two women. Unlike Octavia, he says Cleopatra's beauty was neither incomparable nor striking and that she was "haughty and astonishingly proud in the matter of beauty" (73.2) 35 . If he had stopped there, we might be satisfied with a subtle comparison between An tony's wife and his mistress. Inste ad, Plutarch goes on to say that those Romans who had seen Cleopatra sympathised even more with Octavia, because they knew that she was inferior in both youth and beauty (57.3). This can hardly be more 32 J. Beneker, "Sex, Eroticism, and Politics," in M. Beck (ed.) A Companion to Plutarch, Malden, 2014, p. 508. 33 According to Plutarch, Cleopatra observed Antony's demeanour, which was that appropriate to a soldier, and adopted this manner towards him ἀνειμένως and κατα τε θαρρη κότως (Ant. 27.1). 34 Education is another common theme in ancient moralphilosophical works on women and the household. Cleopatra also falters in other areas. Plutarch says that she put her confidence in the "charms and sorceries" of her character (25.4). He uses μαγγανεύμασι και φίλτροις, which lends him some measure of ambiguity. We do find φίλτρον specifically in a negative context in Conjugalia praecepta, but here Plutarch says the magic lies in Cleopatra's character. This recalls the anecdote in Conjugalia praecepta in which Olympias suspects an unnamed Thessalian woman who had caught Philip's attention of witchcraft, but upon inspection instead exclaims that she has her magic charms in herself (141c; see below). Elsewhere, Plutarch straight up accuses Cleopatra of witchcraft. In his view, she manipulated Antony through secret rites (53.4) and used "certain drugs or witchcraft" (37.4) to render him incapable of rational action.
Her intemperance is also a recurring theme, and upon introduction Plutarch takes great care to describe her arrival to meet Antony. She travelled in luxurious extravagance, her barge covered in gold, silver and purple, accompanied by music. She herself was dressed like "Aphrodite in a painting" (26.12; cf. 26.4), while the smell of incense drifted over the water. It is impossible to cover everything Plutarch says about Cleopatra here. He calls her a flatterer surrounded by flatterers (Ant. 53.45), which is clearly not a good thing 37 . He furthermore says that she was jealous of Octavia and actively tried to keep her and Antony apart 38 , perhaps because she wanted the war to happen (56.23). He accuses her of cowardice, and of fleeing before the battle had been decided at Actium (63.5) 39 . Her grieving 36 Ramon Palerm & González Almenara argue that youth is secondary to social status. Pericles, however, weaponises age against the criticism of Elpinice, the sister of Cimon, essentially telling her she is too old to be meddling in politics (Per. 28.5). Plutarch seems well aware of the attractiveness of youth regardless of social status here as well as at Demetr. 26.4, where he says the prostitute Lamia was past her prime; V. M. Ramón Palerm & G. González Almenara, "Heteras, concubinas y jóvenes de seducción: la influencia femenina en las vidas plutarqueas de Solón, Pericles y Alcibíades", in P.

Olympias
Another noble woman who is neither Greek nor Roman plays a significant role in another Life. Olympias is in some ways similar to Cleopatra. Plutarch says Philip feared that his wife might be using spells and magic, and thus stopped sleeping with her as often as he used to (Alex. 2.4). Like all the women in those parts, Olympias was addicted to Bacchic rites and superstitions, but Plutarch says she pur sued them more zealously than anyone else (2.6) 42 . He highlights her foreignness with the words βαρβαρικώτερον and ὠμῶς, and later speculates that she used potions to harm Arrhidaeus, a contender to the Macedonian throne (77.5). She is also illtempered, jealous and sullen (9.4), and makes no attempt to keep the peace at court. In Conjugalia praecepta, Olym pias is set up against an unknown Thessalian woman accused of using φάρμακα to garner the affections of Philip. The woman proves herself so virtuous that Olympias exclaims, "Away with these slanders! You have your magic charms in yourself" (141c). Olympias thus believes her character is so virtuous that she does not need to use spells or potions. At first glance this might seem to be a positive depiction of Olympias 43 , but according to Plutarch she tried to "get the woman into her power", which is in keeping with the 40 Stadter sees Cleopatra's role after the defeat at Actium as wholly changed. In this stage of their lives he sees her as a loyal partner and affectionate lover to Antony, and thus as a woman who has finally "assumed her proper role"; P. A. Stadter, 1999, p. 181 Russell on His Seventy-Fifth Birthday, Oxford, 1995, 221236, esp. 235236. 41 Cf. the tale about the women of Miletus at Mulier. virt. 249cd (discussed above); see also Apophth. Lac. 242c. In his own life, Plutarch took pride in the fact that Timoxena raised their children herself (Cons. ad ux. 608c,609e). Plutarch also relates the story of Stratonice, who was childless and arranged for her husband to have children by another woman, who she then raised as her own (Mulier. virt. 258d). These anecdotes emphasise women's role as childbearers and caretakers. 42 Nikolaidis notes that her excessive superstition characterizes Olympias as barbarian; Nikolaidis, 1986, p. 235. 43  Plutarch also tells us that the paternity of Alexander was under question, but neither confirms nor denies it, implying that Olympias may have been the partner of some "superior being" (τὴν ὁμιλίαν ὡς κρείττονι συνούσης; Alex. 2.22.6). Lack of temperance is a severe judgement against the character of women and as such it is difficult to gain a reputation for virtue alongside sexual experience or promiscuity 44 . Caesar famously divorced Pompeia purely on the grounds of suspi cion, refusing to remain married to a woman whose virtue was under question (Caes. 11.6). Pompeia, it was said, used the festival of the Bona Dea as a cover to consort with her lover. Naturally, these ri tuals were also said to have had an Orphic ele ment (Caes. 9.110.2).

Aspasia
As far as chastity goes, no other woman of the five we treat here is more wellknown for her sexuality than Aspasia. Plutarch compares her to the Ionian courtesan Thargelia, who was a great beauty and quite intelligent, or perhaps shrewd (again δεινότητος; Per. 24.2). Thargelia used her influence with powerful men to "sow the seeds of Persian sympathy" in Greek cities (25.3). Aspasia apparently emulated Thargelia, and so Pericles admired her for her "rare political wisdom" (24.3), as apparently did Socrates (24.5). Despite her reputation for being intelligent, she was also wellknown for being the mistress of a house of young courtesans. A reputation is no bad thing for a woman, as long as that reputation is based on her virtue (Coniug. praec. 142d). Plutarch admires Aspasia, like Aretaphila, for her wisdom and po li tical acumen (cf. Mulier. virt. 255e). Areta phila, however, only involves herself in politics to free the people of Cyrene and then retires (Mulier. virt. 257e), while Plu tarch introduces Aspasia as a courtesan and instigator of the Samian war.
By comparing Aspasia to Thargelia, Plutarch very unsubtly insinuates that she was sexually (and therefore probably also generally) deviant, and he implies that she and Pericles did not share equal affection for one another. Beneker argues that the couple shared genuine love for each other based on intellectual rather than erotic attraction 45 . Plutarch says that Pericles 44 See Mulier. virt. 258ef, in which a Roman soldier rapes a Galatian woman, who eventually has his head for the deed. The woman, Chiomara, delivers the head to her husband with the words, "it is a noble [r] thing that only one man be alive who has been intimate with me." 45 Beneker draws on the Amatorius, but not Conjugalia praecepta, to inform his reading of the relationship, arguing that Plutarch "arrang[ed] his material so that her loving companionship with Pericles is solidly established before her questionable lifestyle is brought to the foreground." Plutarch compares Aspasia to Thargelia before turning to her relationship with Pericles, so it is rather likely that the notion of the influential courtesan is of some concern to Plutarch here; J. Beneker, "Eros and Intellect: Plutarch's Portrait of Aspasia and Pericles," in Nieto Ibáñez appears to have been genuinely in love with Aspasia, while she continued to entertain men and took a lowly sheepdealer as a lover after Pericles' death (24.4) 46 .
The shamefulness of the relationship is highlighted by the comedies Plutarch quotes, in which he says she was styled as Omphale, Deianira and Hera (24.6).
Pericles apparently went to war against the Samians to please Aspasia (24.1), echoing Plutarch's sentiments about Cleopatra, that other intemperate woman, who inflamed the war between Antony and Augustus 47 .
In his introduction to Aspasia, Plutarch says it's worth wondering what kind of art or power this woman had to influence so many statesmen. The implication is clear: sexually liberated women are dangerous 48 .

Conclusion
The Moralia makes it clear that meddling in men's affairs is forbidden for women, who must at all times try and keep the peace. In the table below there is a notable distinction between the two Roman and three nonRoman women. As they become further removed from axes of power (class, ethnicity, geopolitical location), their characterization seems to change. Plutarch highlights different aspects of their characters; here there is a particular focus on the sexuality of the latter three women. Olympias is superstitious and perhaps even the illicit lover of some god. Aspasia is sexually deviant, a prostitute. Cleopatra, by far the most complex of these characters, is a beautiful and intemperate seductress (see table 2).

Aspasia
There are significant connections betwe en the descriptive language of the Mora lia and that of the Lives. Further study might reveal much deeper ties than this paper can address. Plutarch's women are complex, but on balance, a picture of moral judgement emerges (though it is very often not blackandwhite). It is also very likely that certain factors influence Plutarch's depiction of women in the Lives, including ethnicity, class and sexual status. What is not clear is whether or not Plutarch does so intentionally or subconsciously. I suspect, however, that most Plutarch scho lars nowadays would argue that he chose his words with care. And what then, if these wo men were secondary and he chose his words haphazardly?