Timon holds a massive banquet and hands out money freely to everyone there. Only Apementus, a cynical philosopher, receives none. Timon finds out that his friend Ventidus, is in prison, and pays his bail. He then holds a masque and preaches about friendship. Flavius, however, is unhappy that Timon has given away so much and tells Timon that between patronizing artists, holding parties, and assisting his so-called friends, he has no money. Timon angrily yells at Flavius, who had tried to explain this to him earlier, and his creditors begin to swarm in on him. When he asks for money from his dubious friends, they all refuse. As revenge, he invites them all to a banquet and throws dishes and sprays water at them before running. He finds a trove of gold outside the city, and a group of bandits, including Alcibiades, a rebellious officer exiled for protesting against severe punishment for a crime of passion, finds him. He pays them and all the people who come to visit him, including his old friend Flavius. Flavius wants him to return to society, and he laments that Flavius, a servant, is the only true friend he has ever had. He dies shortly later, and Alcibiades, using the money Timon gave him, marches upon Athens.
Timon of Athens guide sections
