In Plutarch’s Lives, Plutarch examines greatness not through conquest alone, but through character revealed under pressure.

This second volume continues Plutarch’s distinctive approach, pairing Greek and Roman figures to illuminate shared virtues and contrasting moral failures. The lives collected here, including Pelopidas and Marcellus, Aristeides and Cato, and Pyrrhus among others, explore themes of discipline, ambition, justice, and restraint. Through comparison, Plutarch shows how moral qualities influence both success and downfall.

This volume presents Volume II of the English translation by Aubrey Stewart and George Long, carefully prepared for modern readers with an interest in classical civilisation.