Hiero

A short Socratic dialogue between the poet Simonides and Hiero, tyrant of Syracuse. Hiero argues that the tyrant’s life is in fact more miserable than the private man’s — he cannot travel, cannot trust a friend, cannot know whether affection is real — and Simonides replies with advice on how a ruler might govern so as to be genuinely loved rather than merely feared. Composed in the fourth century BC. It is best known to modern readers through Leo Strauss’s commentary On Tyranny and the exchange with Alexandre Kojève printed alongside it, which made this brief text the site of an argument about tyranny, recognition and the end of history.

Why it’s on the list: It sits in the curriculum’s classical Greek section, whose premise is that the Greek city-states offer radically different ways of thinking about governance — and Hiero is the section’s most direct examination of what rule does to the ruler.

Where I saw it: Brendan McCord’s Philosopher-Entrepreneur Reading List, in the section on Classical Greek Political Philosophy. The entry carries a ☑️ on the source page; the page gives no legend for that mark, so it is recorded here literally and not interpreted. The full 211-entry transcription is on The Philosopher-Entrepreneur Reading List.

Connections

• Leo Strauss — whose commentary On Tyranny is why this dialogue is read today; Strauss appears repeatedly on this list.
• Leadership — the dialogue’s subject: what ruling costs the ruler.
• Politics — the broader theme.
• The Philosopher-Entrepreneur Reading List — the curriculum this came from.