| Sumario: | The article examines the figure of Lampon, an uncharacteristic goatherd appearing in a folk-tale-like story in Xenophon's Ephesiaca 2.9-12. It has long been recognized by critics that the circumstances of the Euripidean Electra are recalled in the episode under discussion. Comparisons are made with the Euripidean scene and the "reshuffling" of the main roles is expounded, including the novelist's decision to make Anthia the partner of a goatherd and not the wife of a lowly farmer. On the basis of thematic and verbal similarities, it is argued that Xenophon appears to have a direct knowledge of Euripides' Electra, which he imaginatively exploits. Subtle details of occupation and name are also discussed in relation to the stereotypical αἰπόλος and the ἄγροικος. A characteristic feature recalling the Aristotelian notion of ἀγροικία is pointed, and it is concluded that Xenophon skilfully subverts the stereotypes, as he does not endow Lampon with the traditional negative marking of ἄγροικοι and αἰπόλοι, and indeed moulds an anti-aipolos.
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