A Triumphal Return

This chapter details Alcibiades' return to Athens. It took him four years to get back—four years of fighting and winning. In Athens, opinion was still divided. It was easy to blame Alcibiades; many recalled that he was the sole cause of all the problems of the past and could well bring on more in the future. Others, however, recalled his talents and the intemperate decision that had precipitated his support of the enemy. They blamed the exile into which he had been forced, the dangers he had known, and his powerlessness to help his homeland. In short, both sides argued vehemently about Alcibiades' true leanings. Mostly, they were thinking about the future. By simply dismissing him, they had forced him to act against his country. If they gave him back his rights and put him in charge, he would be in a better position to help them. The chapter then looks at several accounts of Alcibiades' return to Athens, which took place on the day of the festival of Plynteria. One is that of Xenophon, which may well be an eyewitness account; others were from a later period: they come from Plutarch and Diodorus. In spite of everything, Alcibiades' return was an absolute and unqualified triumph.