Theophrastus: Characters is a collection of thirty short character-sketches of various types of individuals who might be met in the streets of Athens in the late fourth century BC. It is a unique work which has had a profound influence on European literature. This edition aims to make it accessible to students, by offering a radically improved text and a commentary which brings out the meaning and nuances of the dazzling but sometimes difficult Greek and offers full elucidation of the often enigmatic references to contemporary social practices and historical events. There is also a full introduction, which discusses the antecedents and affiliations of the work, its date, its purpose, and its literary qualities