Expert: Francesco Marchesani - 8/13/2008

Question
Dear Francesco I study Alexander The Great and i just purchsed two books called Plutarch's lives 1 and 2 .The question is that i was also going to purchase  Plutarch's books "On Sparta,The Rise and Fall of Athens,The Fall of the Roman Republic and Makers of Rome! My question is are Plutarch's two books "Plutarch's Lives" the very same four books i just mentioned that i am considering purchasing? I imagine you think this is a very dumb question but i am very ignorant about Plutarch! thank you Very much

Answer
Hello,
I guess those books are a collection of different books and essays by Plutarch: "Parallel Lives" is a series of biographies of ancient men organized in tandem (one Roman and one Greek), to compare their respective lives and achievements.; these would be covered by the 2 Plutarch's Lives.
He also wrote "Morals", a collection of philosophical and moral essays, and some of these essays might be the source of the other 4 books.
So if your interest is mainly about Alexander, you might want to read the Parallel Lives' entry about Alexander-Caesar, and maybe browse the other 4 books to find the essay "On the Fortune or Virtue of Alexander the Great".