Source edition
Lysias. Lamb, W.R.M., editor. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann Ltd., 1930.
Source data
Perseus Digital Library · CC BY-SA 4.0
Cloned and adapted by Humanitext, with ongoing edits.
Summary
This work is a courtroom speech concerning a dispute over the embezzlement of a family inheritance in classical Athens. The speaker, a relative of two orphaned boys, accuses the defendant, Diogeiton, who is the boys' grandfather and uncle, of extreme dishonesty. The speech begins by explaining the complex family relationships and how Diogeiton embezzled the vast estate entrusted to him by the boys' deceased father, eventually casting the children out of their home. In the middle section, the speaker describes a family arbitration meeting where the boys' mother vehemently denounces Diogeiton's cruelty, followed by a detailed calculation of the inflated and fraudulent expenses he claimed to have spent on the children. In the final section, the speaker exposes Diogeiton's fraudulent double-billing for public services, such as a joint trierarchy, and funeral costs, demonstrating through standard cost-of-living calculations that a significant amount of the inheritance should still remain.