Solon, Themistocles, Pericles

       I think that Plutarch, while he is very skilled at giving information about people without inputting his bias, holds Pericles in highest esteem compared to Solon and Themistocles. I think that this is the case because of how much praise he gives to Pericles, and how little he stresses he negative traits. Plutarch treats Solon in a similar way, but he seems to give more praise and affection to Pericles. Themistocles however, he seems to stress his negative sides more than the others, and still describes him as respectable, but does not praise him as much as he does Solon and Pericles.

       An example we see of Plutarch praising Pericles is when he talks about how he spoke. He says that Pericles spoke very carefully, and had a guarded tongue. He even prayed to the gods that he nothing would slip from his mouth that was not appropriate, or irrelevant (pg 71). This is a very respectable attribute, as Pericles points out, and one that I think should still be sought after today. Another attribute we see Plutarch commending was Pericles' care for the people. He describes him as "caressing the people", and "Having secured his power in the interest of the populace" (pg 72). Finally, at the end of his telling, Plutarch says, "He was indeed a character deserving our high admiration, not only for equitable and mild temper, which all along in many affairs of his life, and great animosities which he incurred, he constantly maintained." This shows that Plutarch help Pericles in very high esteem; higher ( I think) than Solon and Themistocles.