ABSTRACT
Xenophanes’ words indicate that the coming of the Mede (Persians) marked a momentous date in the history of the Greeks. Xenophanes was a renowned poet and theologian as well as a social critic and philosopher. His thoughts on the nature of god exerted an especially powerful influence on the subsequent flourishing of civilization on the Greek mainland. A concern with usefulness for the city is also evident in Xenophanes’ criticism of excessive rewards for and public adulation of athletic achievement. Xenophanes was a subtle and enjoyable poet, a reformer in spiritual and moral matters, and an imaginative philosopher. He was intent on creating beauty, serious about piety, proper religious belief, the civic good, and right conduct, and interested in the ultimate nature and explanation of the world around him. Xenophanes’ theology and critical spirit are more than enough to rank him as one of the great pre-socratic thinkers.
