Editing Pericles (section)

== Early years ==
Pericles was born {{Circa|495 BC}}, in Athens, Greece.{{efn-lg|Pericles' date of birth is uncertain; he could not have been born later than 492–1 and been of age to present the [[Persae]] in 472. He is not recorded as having taken part in the [[Persian Wars]] of 480–79; some historians argue from this that he was unlikely to have been born before 498, but this argument ''ex silentio'' has also been dismissed.<ref name="For" /><ref name="Davies457">J. K. Davies, ''Athenian propertied families, 600–300 BC'', 457.</ref>}} He was the son of the politician [[Xanthippus]], who, though [[Ostracism|ostracized]] in 485–484 BC,<ref>{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Pericles |volume=21 |page=145 |first=Maximilian |last=Caspari}}</ref> returned to Athens to command the Athenian contingent in the Greek victory at [[Battle of Mycale|Mycale]] just five years later. Pericles' mother, Agariste, was a member of the powerful and controversial noble family of the [[Alcmaeonidae]], and her familial connections played a crucial role in helping start his political career. Agariste was the great-granddaughter of the tyrant of [[Sicyon]], [[Cleisthenes of Sicyon|Cleisthenes]], and the niece of the Athenian reformer [[Cleisthenes]].{{efn-lg|Plutarch says "granddaughter" of Cleisthenes,<ref name="Pl3"/> but this is chronologically implausible, and there is consensus that this should be "niece".<ref name="Br"/>}}<ref name="Br">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Pericles|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|year=2002}}</ref> Pericles belonged to the [[Attica|Attic]] ''[[phyle]]'' (clan) of [[Acamantis]] ({{lang|grc|Ἀκαμαντὶς φυλή}}). His early years were quiet; the introverted young Pericles avoided public appearances, instead preferring to devote his time to his studies.<ref name="Helios">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Pericles|encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia The Helios|year=1952}}</ref>

According to [[Herodotus]] and [[Plutarch]], Agariste dreamed, a few nights before Pericles' birth, that she had borne a lion. Legends say that [[Philip II of Macedon]] had a similar dream before the birth of his son, [[Alexander the Great]].<ref name="Her">Herodotus, VI, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Hdt%2e+6%2e131/ 131].</ref><ref name="Pl3">Plutarch, ''Pericles'', [[s:Lives/Pericles#3|III]].</ref> One interpretation of the dream treats the lion as a traditional symbol of greatness, but the story may also allude to the unusually large size of Pericles' skull, which became a popular target of contemporary comedians (who called him "Squill-head", after the [[Drimia maritima|squill]] or sea-onion).<ref name="Pl3" /><ref name="Ehr239">V.L. Ehrenberg, ''From Solon to Socrates'', a239.</ref> Although Plutarch claims that this deformity was the reason that Pericles was always depicted [[Pericles with the Corinthian helmet|wearing a helmet]], this is not the case; the helmet was actually the symbol of his official rank as [[strategos]] (general).<ref name="Cunn">L. Cunningham & J. Reich, ''Culture and Values'', 73.</ref>

{{rquote|right|Our policy does not copy the laws of neighboring states; we are rather a pattern to others than imitators ourselves. It is called a democracy, because not the few but the many govern. If we look to the laws, they afford equal justice to all in their private differences; if to social standing, advancement in public life falls to reputation for capacity, class considerations not being allowed to interfere with merit; nor again does poverty bar the way, if a man is able to serve the state, he is not hindered by the obscurity of his condition.|[[Thucydides]], ''[[Pericles' Funeral Oration]]''<ref>[[s:History of the Peloponnesian War/Book 2#2:37|2.37]]; Thucydides [http://perseus.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0200;query=chapter%3D%2322;layout=;loc=1.21.1 disclaims verbal accuracy] {{dead link|date=October 2017|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}.</ref>{{efn-lg|name="Thucydides speeches"}}}}

His family's nobility and wealth allowed him to fully pursue his inclination toward education. He learned music from the masters of the time ([[Damon (ancient Greek musicologist)|Damon]] or Pythocleides could have been his teacher)<ref name="P4">Plutarch, ''Pericles'', [[s:Lives/Pericles#4|IV]]</ref><ref name="PlatoA">Plato, ''Alcibiades I'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Plat%2e+Alc%2e+1+118c/ 118c]</ref> and he is considered to have been the first politician to attribute importance to philosophy.<ref name="Helios" /> He enjoyed the company of the philosophers [[Protagoras]], [[Zeno of Elea]], and [[Anaxagoras]]. Anaxagoras, in particular, became a close friend and influenced him greatly.<ref name="P4" /><ref name="Mend1">M. Mendelson, ''Many Sides'', 1</ref>

Pericles' manner of thought and [[rhetoric]]al charisma may have possibly been in part products of Anaxagoras' emphasis on emotional calm in the face of trouble, and [[philosophical skepticism|skepticism]] about divine phenomena.<ref name="Br" /> His proverbial calmness and self-control are also often regarded as products of Anaxagoras' influence.<ref name="PP6">Plutarch, ''Pericles'', [[s:Lives/Pericles#6|VI]] and Plato, Phaedrus, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Plat%2e+Phaedrus+270a/ 270a]</ref>

{{Timeline of Pericles' life}}