Xenophon, Poroi [Ways and Means]

Eleni Krikona (Catholic University of Leuven)

Ed. by Martine Diepenbroek, University of Johannesburg
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.1.1: Greek Writing and Culture: Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic and Imperial, -800--100.
Vol. editors: Eleni Bozia (University of Florida), Jonathan Burgess (University of Toronto), Anca Dan (École Practique de Hautes Études PSL), Martine Diepenbroek (University of Johannesburg), Giacomo Fedeli (University of Exeter), Victoria Fendel (University of Oxford), Emily Kneebone (University of Nottingham), Vaios Liapis (Open University of Cyprus), Elodie Paillard (University of Sydney), Mali Skotheim (Ashoka University), Laura Swift (The Open University), Guendalina Daniela Maria Taietti (University of Liverpool)

Domains

Political Economy

Dates

First circulation or publication c. -380

Places

Ancient Greece (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Treatise

Resources

Introduction and historical context of Xenophon’s Poroi

Around 355 BCE, two works reflecting the needs of their time were composed in Athens: On the Peace by Isocrates, and On Revenues (or Poroi) by Xenophon, which was also his final work (for the dating of the work, see in detail Gauthier 1976, 4-6 with note 12. For the title of the work, see again Gauthier 1976, 7-19). Isocrates proposes that the Athenians abandon their hegemonic ambitions and instead cultivate prosperity within the city by adopting a defensive foreign policy. Xenophon, as we shall see, proposes a series of measures that would increase the revenues of the city of Athens and bring prosperity to the inhabitants of Attica; a prosperity that could be sustained if the Athenians chose not to pursue an aggressive foreign policy and instead...

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4758 words

Citation: Krikona, Eleni. "Poroi". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 18 March 2026 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=2613, accessed 09 June 2026.]