Theseus and John Smith In The Rise and Fall of Athens: Nine Greek Lives, Plutarch writes about nine of the most influential men of the long and remarkable history of ancient Greece, and then compares them to similar men from ancient Rome. One of Plutarch’s chosen Greeks, Theseus founded Athens and set it on the path to the democracy that it eventually became, while embarking on daring journeys and strange adventures along the way. Although separated by thousands of years, the life of Theseus bears some similarity to that of Englishman John Smith, a daring explorer who fought his way around the world, and was responsible for the successful founding of first permanent European settlement in North America.
Although …show more content…
He decided to make it into a large city that consolidated the local farmers and tradesmen into a community. “Theseus conceived a wonderful and far-reaching plan which was nothing less than to concentrate the inhabitants of Attica into a capital” (Plutarch, 1.24). Although maintaining control of the army, Theseus gave up his kingly right to rule and much wealth, and went against the established form of governing of the time, believing “there was to be a democracy” (Plutarch, 1.24). Even more dramatic, Theseus walked away and left Athens in control of his enemies: “He discovered that the hatred of those who had been his enemies when he went away was now reinforced by contempt…he found himself outmaneuvered by demagogues and factions and ...he sailed away to Scyros”.(Plutarch, 1.35) John Smith also broke with the traditional norms of governing when he became the de facto leader of Jamestown, not due to wealth or nobility or appointment, but because he was the only man clever and willing enough to see to the survival of the colony. “His relationship with the colony’s other leaders was generally antagonistic, his focus being on the practical means of survival in the wilderness rather than on personal privileges and status”, and he even went as far as to say, “He that will not work shall not eate” . Although lacking the pedigree of …show more content…
First, Theseus was born into a gifted world, where he was the “son of the royal line of Aegeus” (Plutarch, 1.24) and a demigod: “Which led the Athenians to him as a demigod” (Plutarch, 1.35). Smith, on the other hand, was the son of a yeoman farmer who took to sea, setting out on his own at age 16 . While Smith seems to have led a rather upright life, Theseus, common to his time, carried on with many women, and left many reported offspring. After Theseus was forced to leave Athens, his enemies took over his city, “and then pushed him over the cliffs to his death” (Plutarch, 1.35). After traveling the world, Smith died in England poor, but surrounded by friends who thought highly of him, as shown by the tablet over his tomb: “Here lies one conquer’d that hath conquer’d kings, Subdued large territories, and done things, Which to the world impossible would seeme, But that the truth is held in more esteeme” . Overall, Smith overcame his humble birth, and even overcame the noble births of Jamestown’s lazy settlers to establish a colony that could succeed, while Theseus worked alone, supported by his noble birth, to establish a way of life that he never actually
Although …show more content…
He decided to make it into a large city that consolidated the local farmers and tradesmen into a community. “Theseus conceived a wonderful and far-reaching plan which was nothing less than to concentrate the inhabitants of Attica into a capital” (Plutarch, 1.24). Although maintaining control of the army, Theseus gave up his kingly right to rule and much wealth, and went against the established form of governing of the time, believing “there was to be a democracy” (Plutarch, 1.24). Even more dramatic, Theseus walked away and left Athens in control of his enemies: “He discovered that the hatred of those who had been his enemies when he went away was now reinforced by contempt…he found himself outmaneuvered by demagogues and factions and ...he sailed away to Scyros”.(Plutarch, 1.35) John Smith also broke with the traditional norms of governing when he became the de facto leader of Jamestown, not due to wealth or nobility or appointment, but because he was the only man clever and willing enough to see to the survival of the colony. “His relationship with the colony’s other leaders was generally antagonistic, his focus being on the practical means of survival in the wilderness rather than on personal privileges and status”, and he even went as far as to say, “He that will not work shall not eate” . Although lacking the pedigree of …show more content…
First, Theseus was born into a gifted world, where he was the “son of the royal line of Aegeus” (Plutarch, 1.24) and a demigod: “Which led the Athenians to him as a demigod” (Plutarch, 1.35). Smith, on the other hand, was the son of a yeoman farmer who took to sea, setting out on his own at age 16 . While Smith seems to have led a rather upright life, Theseus, common to his time, carried on with many women, and left many reported offspring. After Theseus was forced to leave Athens, his enemies took over his city, “and then pushed him over the cliffs to his death” (Plutarch, 1.35). After traveling the world, Smith died in England poor, but surrounded by friends who thought highly of him, as shown by the tablet over his tomb: “Here lies one conquer’d that hath conquer’d kings, Subdued large territories, and done things, Which to the world impossible would seeme, But that the truth is held in more esteeme” . Overall, Smith overcame his humble birth, and even overcame the noble births of Jamestown’s lazy settlers to establish a colony that could succeed, while Theseus worked alone, supported by his noble birth, to establish a way of life that he never actually