The most significant literary work of Plutarch is, by common agreement, the `Parallel Lives`, which are parallel biographies of pairs of a Greek and a Roman politician or general, numbering 48, of which 46 have been preserved.

He also wrote the `Moralia`, an abundance of essays on virtue, theology, religion, politics, and the role of philosophy in shaping the character, particularly of public men, from whose choices and actions the lives of the governed have always depended.

However, it seems that with his `Moralia`, he did not feel he achieved his objective of influencing the people of his time and guiding them towards the path of virtue, during a period when the Roman Empire was at its height and heading towards inevitable decline.

Thus, he turned to the biography of the great politicians and generals of the past, to provide clearer and more human examples—models for emulation of their great moments or for avoiding their unlawful actions.

Among his choices are Solon with Poplicola, Themistocles with Camillus, Aristides with Cato, Pericles with Fabius Maximus, Alcibiades with Marcellus, Pelopidas with Marcellus, Alexander with Caesar, Agesilaus with Pompey, Demetrius with Antony, and others.

In the `Parallel Lives`, Plutarch clearly states that he does not write history nor focus his interest on recording their most famous deeds, but rather through real figures and true situations, he radiographs their inner world and offers readers the necessary historical material to understand the characters of the renowned men and their moral conduct.

Thus, in a masterful way, Plutarch reflects and combines his knowledge of the past with the need for moral uplifting of nations and rulers, during a time marked by symptoms of decline.

[Excerpt from the publisher's or edition's presentation text]