Professor Norman Sandridge of Howard University gave a speech at Villanova University titled The Psychopathy of Alcibiades: Applying a Modern Psychological Construct to an Ancient Leader. Professor Sandridge says,
“In this lecture I make the argument that Plutarch’s portrait of the fifth-century Athenian statesman, Alcibiades, shares many character traits with the contemporary construct of the psychopath, namely, grandiosity, low emotional affect, instrumental aggression, and chameleon-like versatility. Moreover, Alcibiades’ conduct as a leader, again as described by Plutarch, can help us appreciate our own contemporary ambivalence toward psychopathic leadership in the fields of politics and beyond.”