Project Gutenberg 1998-01-01 Public domain in the USA. 603 Xenophon -431 -355 Ξενοφών Jenofonte Xénophon Dakyns, Henry Graham 1838 1911 Dakyns, H. G. (Henry Graham) Dakyns, Henry G. (Henry Graham) Hiero Wikipedia page about this book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiero_(Xenophon) Produced by John Bickers, and David Widger "Hiero by Xenophon" is an imagined dialogue that falls under the category of philosophical discourse, specifically concerning political theory and ethics. Written in the late 5th century BC, the book features a conversation between Simonides, a notable poet, and Hieron, the tyrant of Syracuse. The primary topic of the text is an exploration of the nature of tyranny and the contrasting experiences of a despot versus an ordinary citizen, particularly in terms of happiness, pleasure, and societal relationships. In this dialogue, Hieron expresses his belief that the life of a tyrant is filled with more pain and fewer pleasures compared to that of ordinary people, a surprising assertion given the common misconceptions about the life of a ruler. The conversation elaborates on various sources of joy and sorrow, including friendship, trust, the burdens of political power, and the constant threat of betrayal. Simonides challenges Hieron's perspective by asserting that a ruler’s status should bring greater gratitude and affection from subjects, to which Hieron counters that his tyranny breeds fear rather than genuine respect. Ultimately, the text reflects on the complexities and contradictions of despotic rule, leading to a deeper understanding of what it truly means to lead and how personal connections are fundamentally altered by the nature of power. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 76.6 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. en Classical literature Hieron I, Tyrant of Syracuse, -467 B.C. or 466 B.C. Simonides, approximately 556 B.C.-467 B.C. Dialogues, Greek -- Translations into English Despotism -- Early works to 1800 Syracuse (Italy) -- Politics and government -- Early works to 1800 PA Text Category: Classics of Literature Category: Philosophy & Ethics 126142 2025-08-01T08:46:28.050128 text/html 121989 2013-01-16T07:58:54 text/html; charset=us-ascii 99727 2025-08-01T08:46:32.487612 application/epub+zip 102048 2025-08-01T08:46:29.616109 application/epub+zip 102047 2025-08-01T08:46:28.602144 application/epub+zip 165777 2025-08-01T08:46:34.452605 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 165165 2025-08-01T08:46:31.901606 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 146427 2022-09-01T09:47:38.454595 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 110511 2023-10-01T08:02:20.453955 text/plain 17866 2025-08-01T08:46:34.581581 application/rdf+xml 7449 2025-08-01T08:46:29.097111 image/jpeg 2233 2025-08-01T08:46:28.851112 image/jpeg 95855 2025-08-01T08:46:28.062116 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia en.wikipedia