Theramenes in Xenophon’s Hellenika

Abstract

Theramenes is a pivotal figure in the Hellenika, on account of his involvement in the condemnation of the Battle of Arginusae and his role as part of the Thirty Tyrants. In this article, we address the possibility of regarding Xenophon as an "inside critic" of Athe-nian democracy and propose a non-episodic reading, seeking to examine Theramenes as a politician of great influence within the dictates of the democratic structure, albeit being committed to dismantling it, and as a paradigm of the tyrant's friend.