Plutarch’s Compositional Technique: The Anecdote Collections and the Parallel Lives

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OUR NOTION of Plutarch’s preparations for his Parallel Lives, as for many works of the Moralia, must recognize a certain flexibility and experimentation on his part. After he had decided to write on certain figures as biographical subjects, and reviewed his general historical knowledge, he no doubt began specific readings in the histories of the periods concerned and in the contemporary documents he had been able to discover. He would als\o have considered different possible interpretations of the heroes’ characters, and tried to identify specific anecdotes or incidents that he might be able to use. This applies particularly to his note-taking, whether in the form of anecdote collections or summary historical narratives, and to the manner in which he reworked these materials in preparing the Lives.