"Against Timarchus" () was a speech by

Aeschines Aeschines (; Greek: ; 389314 BC) was a Greek statesman and one of the ten Attic orators. Biography Although it is known he was born in Athens, the records regarding his parentage and early life are conflicting; but it seems probable that h ...

accusing Timarchus of being unfit to involve himself in public life. The case was brought about in 346–345 BC, in response to Timarchus, along with

Demosthenes Demosthenes (; ; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide insight into the politics and cu ...

, bringing a suit against Aeschines, accusing him of misconduct as an ambassador to

Philip II of Macedon Philip II of Macedon (; 382 BC – October 336 BC) was the king (''basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the ...

. The speech provides evidence of a number of actions which, according to Aeschines, would cause a citizen to lose the right of addressing the Assembly. Aeschines accuses Timarchus of two of these forbidden acts: prostituting himself, and wasting his inheritance. Along with the accusations of

prostitution Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, no ...

and squandering his inheritance for which Timarchus was on trial of

Areopagus The Areopagus () is a prominent rock outcropping located northwest of the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. Its English name is the Late Latin composite form of the Greek name Areios Pagos, translated "Hill of Ares" (). The name ''Areopagus'' also r ...

, the speech contains charges of "bribery, sycophancy, the buying of office, embezzlement, and perjury" and emphasizes Aeschines' disgust with Timarchus' excessive lifestyle. Modern scholars have criticised the lack of evidence that Aeschines put forward in ''Against Timarchus'', for instance by pointing out that he has no evidence that any of Timarchus' lovers ever paid him. Indeed, Hubbard observes that he does not even manage to produce a single witness who will testify that Timarchus had any sexual relationship with the men in question at all, though in his speeches Aeschines says that Timarchus' affairs were well known to the jury. Because Aeschines attacks Timarchus' moral character in response to political allegations made against him, the speech is classified as an example of an

ad hominem , short for , refers to several types of arguments that are usually fallacious. Often currently this term refers to a rhetorical strategy where the speaker attacks the character, motive, or some other attribute of the person making an argument ...

argument. Passwater argues that sex work in general is not the basis for the ad hominem, since

pederasty Pederasty or paederasty () is a sexual relationship between an adult man and an adolescent boy. It was a socially acknowledged practice in Ancient Greece and Rome and elsewhere in the world, such as Pre-Meiji Japan. In most countries today, ...

was a socially accepted practice of the upper class. Instead, the accusation implies sex work in exchange for money, and purchased by men of a lower class than political officials, rather than sex work in exchange for mentorship and access to a political education as in pederasty. Aeschines won the case, and Timarchus was punished by disenfranchisement.

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''Against Timarchus''
{{Authority control Society of ancient Greece Ancient Greek law LGBTQ history in Greece Ancient Greek orations