The story of Dio Chrysostom (circa 40-120 AD) from Bithynian Prusa is full of contradictions and transformations. He inherited large estates and debts from his generous father, Pausikrates. He proved to be a capable orator and an enemy of philosophers.

During his travels, he visited Rome during the reign of Emperor Vespasian (69-79) and yielded to the Stoic school. Especially critical of Emperor Domitian (81-96), in 82 AD he was expelled by Domitian from Italy and Bithynia and wandered in poverty, primarily in countries north of the Aegean, as far as the Danube and the primitive Getae.

In 97 AD he delivered a public speech to Greeks gathered in Olympia and was received in Rome by Emperor Nero (96-98), and he returned to Prusa. When he returned to Rome again in 98-99 for the embassy of thanks, he became a close friend of Emperor Trajan. In 102, he traveled to Alexandria and elsewhere.

In his involvement in a lawsuit regarding plans to upgrade Prusa at his own expense, he presented his case to the governor of Bithynia, Pliny the Younger (111-112). The rest of his life is unknown.

Most of the surviving Discourses (or Orations) of Dio refer to political issues (the most important concern affairs in Bithynia and provide valuable details about conditions in Asia Minor) or moral questions (mostly written in a later phase of his life; they contain many of his best writings). Some philosophical and historical works, including one about the Getae, have been lost.

What remains of his entire work makes him prominent in the revival of Greek literature in the late part of the first century and the early part of the second. The edition of the Classic Library of Lobe of Dio Chrysostom is in five volumes.