Alcibiades Ethical Beliefs

Alcibiades Ethical Beliefs

Alcibiades displayed his eagerness to deceive multiple people in order to achieve what was in his self–interest–his superiority and well–being. He persuaded and encouraged other cities to make walls to the sea, joining alongside Athens in the pursuit against Sparta.

While Alcibiades sustained an ongoing relationship with the people, it continued as an imbalance. Alcibiades's lifestyle became public knowledge, and his luxurious behavior was exposed and not particularly desirable to most Athenians, especially the conservative Athenians. This manifested a discontent among the people, which only furthered the love–hate relationship that Alcibiades had with the people of Athens. Plutarch wrote,

"The truth is, his liberties, his public shows, and ... Show more content on Helpwriting.net ...Alcibiades used every situation to elevate himself and establish superiority, which enhanced the type of unbalanced relationship he had with the people for most of his lifetime. Alcibiades's unethical practices in both political and private life were questionable. He sought after pleasures and naturally deceived many, making him a great politician, but dubious as a virtuous man. Plutarch wrote, "Certainly, if ever man was ruined by his own glory, it was Alcibiades" (287). The ambitions and passions in Alcibiades life that went unchecked resulted in the imbalance in his life both private and public. Although he befriended Socrates early and strove for true honor and real virtue, the rest of his life unfolded in a vicious way, rather than influenced by virtue. Alcibiades adapted to both good and bad, vice and virtue, establishing a strong inconsistency in his morals as well as his character altogether. The central image of this life was certainly a chameleon. Plutarch wrote, "Not that his natural disposition changed so easily, nor that his real character was so variable, but, whether he was sensible that by pursuing his own inclinations he might give offense to those with whom he had occasion to converse, he transformed himself into any shape, and adopted any fashion, that he observed to be most agreeable" (275–276). Alcibiades morphed into whatever it took, whether he was around different people or aiding another nation, he made sure to adapt to his surroundings that also helped further his own self–interest as well. Earlier in the life, Plutarch wrote that Alcibiades was neither completely virtuous nor vicious and as the life continued this never became clearer. Alcibiades always maintained a neutral position in between vice and virtue. Although Socrates attempted to alter Alcibiades and positively affect his soul, this change never happened, thus resulting

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