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Lucian of Samosata Dialogues

A Feast of Lapithae - A parody of Plato's Symposium. A philosophers' banquet ends in drunken violence.

Anacharsis, a Discussion of Physical Training - A dialogue between Solon and Anacharsis about athletics.

A Portrait-Study - A eulogy of Panthea, the mistress of the Roman emperor Lucius Verus. Critics have doubted the sincerity of the praise.

A Word with Hesiod - Lycinus (Lucian) mocks the prophetic claims of the poet Hesiod.

Charon - A dialogue between Hermes and Charon about the vanity of human wishes.

Cronosolon - A severe satire on the ridiculous rites and ceremonies which made a part of the Saturnalia, towards the end of this little tract he exposes the absurdity of some convivial customs and recommends others in their stead.

Defence of the 'Portrait-Study' - A defence of his essay Portrait-Study

Demosthenes, an Encomium - Praise of the orator Demosthenes.

Dialogues of the Dead - 30 miniature dialogues set in the Underworld. Among the most famous of Lucian's works.

Dialogues of the Gods - 25 miniature dialogues mocking the Homeric conception of the Greek gods.

Dialogues of the Hetaerae - 15 miniature dialogues between hetairai. The style is influenced by the New Comedy and the mimes of authors such as Herondas.

Dialogues of the Sea-Gods - 15 miniature dialogues involving the Greek Sea-Gods.

Hermotimus, or the Rival Philosophies - The longest of Lucian's works. A philosophical dialogue, modelled on those of Plato, between an old Stoic, Hermotimus, and Lycinus (who represents Lucian himself).

Herodotus and Aetion - An account of how the historian Herodotus and the painter Aetion both publicised their works at the Olympic Games. It contains a description of Aetion's picture of the marriage of Alexander the Great and Roxana.

Icaromenippus, an Aerial Expedition - Imitating Icarus, Menippus makes himself a pair of wings and flies up to the gods where he learns that Zeus has decided to destroy all philosophers as useless.

Lexiphanes - A satire on linguistic pretentiousness.

Menippus - The Cynic philosopher Menippus visits the Underworld to ask Teiresias which is the true philosophy.

Nigrinus - A diatribe against the city of Rome put into the mouth of the philosopher Nigrinus.

Of Pantomime - A defence of the Roman art of pantomime.

Timon the Misanthrope - A dialogue involving Timon of Athens. Lucian's work influenced the play by Shakespeare.

Toxaris, A Dialogue of Friendship - A dialogue between the Scythian Toxaris and the Greek Mnesippus about friendship, inspired by the Scythian worship of Orestes and Pylades.

Prometheus on Caucasus - Prometheus defends himself against the charges of stealing meat from Zeus, stealing fire from heaven and creating mankind.

Sale of Creeds - Zeus puts various philosophers up for sale in a slave market.

Saturnalia - A description of the Roman festival of Saturnalia.

Saturnalian Letters - Letters about wealth, Saturnalia, and related affairs.

The Cynic - A dialogue between Lycinus (i.e. Lucian) and a Cynic philosopher.

The Double Indictment - Lucian defends his literary style against his critics.

The Fisher - A sequel to Philosophies for Sale.

The Gods in Council - A dialogue in which Momus complains that too many foreigners and mortals have been admitted to the ranks of the Greek gods. His targets include Dionysus, Apis and Anubis.

The Liar - A collection of tall tales, including the story of the Sorcerer's Apprentice.

The Parasite, a Demonstration that Sponging is a Profession - Lucian ironically proves that parasitism is the highest of all art forms.

The Purist Purized - Satirizing the euphuists of Lucian’s day

The Rooster - The poor cobbler Micyllus threatens to kill a rooster which has woken him from a dream of riches. The rooster explains that he is a reincarnation of Pythagoras. He grants Micyllus the power of invisibility so he can show him the private life of the rich and prove the cobbler is far better off in his poverty.

The Runaways - An attack on contemporary Cynics.

The Ship, or the Wishes - The sight of a huge Egyptian grain-ship prompts a discussion among friends about what they most desire. Adeimantus would have the ship filled with gold and live a life of luxury; Samippus would like to be a world-conquering king; Timolaus wants magic powers, including invisibility. After hearing them all, Lycinus (Lucian), says that he is content with the privilege of laughing at the others, especially when they claim to be philosophers.

Voyage to the Lower World - A group of dead people, including the tyrant Megapenthes, are carried to the Underworld in Charon's boat. Only the cobbler Micyllus accepts his fate with resignation.

Zeus Cross-Examined - A dialogue concerning the contradiction between the power of fate and divine omnipotence.

Zeus Tragoedus - A parody of Greek tragedy and a discussion of the conflicting Stoic and Epicurean ideas about the nature of the gods.

home/texts_and_library/dialogues.txt · Last modified: 2019/07/08 20:24 by frank

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