In this paper, we propose to identify the sense and context of philanthropia, one of the transversal
concepts of Greek culture, in the Roman biographies of Coriolanus, Cicero, and Cato Minor.
Our aim is to analyse the actions that Plutarch associates with philanthropia and the various
values attached to it. In restricting our research to Roman biographies we intend to evaluate the
sense of philanthropia in Plutarchan synkriseis and its cultural implications.