4. A Pretty Boy Spoiled Brat
Alkibiades was born into a wealthy family. His father had made a name for himself during the Persian War – the one in the movie 300 and its less impressive sequel, 300: Rise of an Empire – both as a fighter and by subsidizing the cost of a trireme. The father was killed when Alkibiades was a toddler, and his relative Pericles became his guardian. However, Pericles was too busy with his duties as a statesman to provide the boy with the necessary guidance. Fortunately for Pericles, he did not live to see how the failure to properly raise his ward backfired so badly that it wrecked Athens.
Alkibiades developed into a dissipated young man, whose gifts of brilliance and charm were counterbalanced by self-centeredness, irresponsibility, extravagance, and debauchery. In his early years growing up, Alkibiades was considered Athens’ most beautiful youth. In an era when pederasty was widespread and acceptable, he was passionately pursued by many and was showered with gifts and flattery. Even Socrates was among his admirers. That kind of pursuit, admiration, and being the center of attention boosted Alkibiades’ ego through the stratosphere and solidified his sense of entitlement.
