Chaerephon (; , ''Chairephōn''; c. 470/460 – 403/399 BCE), of the

Athenian Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

deme In Ancient Greece, a deme or (, plural: ''demoi'', δήμοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Classical Athens, Athens and other city-states. Demes as simple subdivisions of land in the countryside existed in the 6th century BC and earlier, bu ...

Sphettus, was an ancient Greek best remembered as a loyal friend and follower of

Socrates Socrates (; ; – 399 BC) was a Ancient Greek philosophy, Greek philosopher from Classical Athens, Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and as among the first moral philosophers of the Ethics, ethical tradition ...

. He is known only through brief descriptions by classical writers and was "an unusual man by all accounts", though a man of loyal democratic values.

Life

Chaerephon is mentioned by three writers of his time, all of whom were probably well acquainted with him:

Aristophanes Aristophanes (; ; ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Ancient Greek comedy, comic playwright from Classical Athens, Athens. He wrote in total forty plays, of which eleven survive virtually complete today. The majority of his surviving play ...

Xenophon Xenophon of Athens (; ; 355/354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian. At the age of 30, he was elected as one of the leaders of the retreating Ancient Greek mercenaries, Greek mercenaries, the Ten Thousand, who had been ...

, and

Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...

. Considered together, these sources suggest that Chaerephon was a well-known, alert, energetic, engaging individual, possibly with a distinctive physical appearance and probably a bit of a "character", who moved easily in the social and intellectual circles of the day.

In Aristophanes

Chaerephon appears in three of Aristophanes' comic plays: '' The Clouds'', ''

The Wasps ''The Wasps'' () is the fourth in chronological order of the eleven surviving plays by Aristophanes. It was produced at the Lenaia festival in 422 BC, during Athens' short-lived respite from the Peloponnesian War and shortly before the death o ...

'', and '' The Birds''. ''The Clouds'', produced in 423 BCE, portrays Socrates and his assistant Chaerephon as a pair of charlatans operating a pseudo-scientific school in Athens. Chaerephon is represented in ''The Clouds'' as pale and malnourished, a "living corpse", and it is sometimes inferred that he must have been a thin, unhealthy looking fellow in real life. In ''The Wasps'' Chaerephon, or some visual caricature of him, has a brief, non-speaking role as an impartial witness. In ''The Birds'' he is nicknamed "the bat", possibly alluding to nocturnal habits, a bony appearance, or a sudden, excitable nature (as suggested in Plato's works, below).

In Xenophon

In his ''

Memorabilia A souvenir (French language, French for 'a remembrance or memory'), memento, keepsake, or token of remembrance is an object a person acquires for the memory, memories the owner associates with it. A souvenir can be any object that can be collecte ...

'' Xenophon includes Chaerephon in his list of the "true companions" of Socrates. Also in the Socratic inner circle, according to Xenophon, were

Crito ''Crito'' ( or ; ) is a dialogue written by the ancient Greece, ancient Greek philosopher Plato. It depicts a conversation between Socrates and his wealthy friend Crito of Alopece regarding justice (''δικαιοσύνη''), injustice (''ἀ ...

, Hermogenes,

Simmias of Thebes Simmias of Thebes (; fl. 5th–4th century BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher, disciple of Socrates, and a friend of Cebes. In his ''Memorabilia'', Xenophon includes him in the inner circle of Socrates' followers. He appears in Plato's ''Phaed ...

, Cebes of Thebes, Phaedondes, and Chaerephon's younger brother Chaerecrates, although Xenophon acknowledges that there were others. Later in the ''Memorabilia'', Xenophon recounts an exchange between Socrates and Chaerecrates on the occasion of a falling-out between the brothers. Socrates argues persuasively that Chaerecrates should make every effort to achieve a prompt reconciliation with his older brother Chaerephon.

In Plato

In Plato's ''

Apology Apology, The Apology, apologize/apologise, apologist, apologetics, or apologetic may refer to: Common uses * Apology (act), an expression of remorse or regret * Apologia, a formal defense of an opinion, position, or action Arts, entertainment ...

'', an account of the Trial of Socrates in 399 BCE, Socrates calls Chaerephon his longtime friend and the friend of many present. Socrates says that Chaerephon is now deceased but indicates that his brother is in attendance at the trial. Socrates suggests that Chaerephon had a reputation for being impetuous and we learn that it was Chaerephon who journeyed to

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), was an ancient sacred precinct and the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient Classical antiquity, classical world. The A ...

to ask the

Delphic oracle Pythia (; ) was the title of the high priestess of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. She specifically served as its oracle and was known as the Oracle of Delphi. Her title was also historically glossed in English as the Pythoness. The Pythia w ...

who was the wisest of men. (The oracle replied that there was none wiser than Socrates.) Socrates also alludes to a period of exile which was endured by Chaerephon and some others present. This is sometimes taken as evidence that Chaerephon, unlike Socrates, was an active supporter of the

Athenian Democracy Athenian democracy developed around the 6th century BC in the Ancient Greece, Greek city-state (known as a polis) of Classical Athens, Athens, comprising the city of Athens and the surrounding territory of Attica, and focusing on supporting lib ...

and was persecuted on this account when the democracy was temporarily deposed after the defeat of Athens by

Sparta Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement in the Evrotas Valley, valley of Evrotas (river), Evrotas rive ...

. See p 511, where Vlastos writes about "Chaerephon, of whose strongly democratic partisanship there is no doubt." Chaerephon appears in two other Platonic dialogues: the '' Charmides'' and the ''

Gorgias Gorgias ( ; ; – ) was an ancient Greek sophist, pre-Socratic philosopher, and rhetorician who was a native of Leontinoi in Sicily. Several doxographers report that he was a pupil of Empedocles, although he would only have been a few years ...

''. At the start of the ''Charmides'', Socrates returns to Athens from the military campaign at

Potidaea __NOTOC__ Potidaea (; , ''Potidaia'', also Ποτείδαια, ''Poteidaia'') was a colony founded by the Corinthians around 600 BC in the narrowest point of the peninsula of Pallene, Chalcidice, Pallene, the westernmost of three peninsulas at t ...

and is greeted with great enthusiasm by Chaerephon who is described as "a wild man". This campaign concluded in 430 BCE (3 years before Plato's birth and 31 years before Socrates' death), but Plato is probably accurate in depicting the association of Chaerephon and Socrates as already well established. At the start of the ''Gorgias'', Chaerephon and Socrates arrive late at an Athenian gathering for an evening of conversation with

, a famed

Sophist A sophist () was a teacher in ancient Greece in the fifth and fourth centuries BCE. Sophists specialized in one or more subject areas, such as philosophy, rhetoric, music, athletics and mathematics. They taught ''arete'', "virtue" or "excellen ...

. Socrates good-naturedly blames their lateness on Chaerephon, who chatted too long in the

Agora The agora (; , romanized: ', meaning "market" in Modern Greek) was a central public space in ancient Ancient Greece, Greek polis, city-states. The literal meaning of the word "agora" is "gathering place" or "assembly". The agora was the center ...

. Chaerephon then says that Gorgias is a friend of his and, with some coaching by Socrates, he serves satisfactorily as Gorgias' initial interlocutor in the early part of the dialogue.

References

Sources