The Extreme Wish in Greek Literature

Abstract

Abstract In a topos found in a range of Greek texts spanning the archaic period to the sixth century AD, a speaker links the attainment of a cherished goal to a declared desire for death. This sequence of ideas is often dismissed as formulaic or rhetorical; I argue that the topos is more varied and meaningful than such characterizations suggest. Its rationale, grounded in the archaic concept of alternation of fortune, is spelled out for a modern audience in Solon’s speech to Croesus at the opening of Herodotus’ Histories.