Ἀράτου γένοςἌρατος ἐγένετο πατρὸς μὲν Ἀθηνοδώρου, μητρὸς δὲ Λητοδώρας, ἐκ Σόλων τῆς Κιλικίας. ὠνομάσθαι δὲ τὴν πόλιν φασὶν ἀπὸ Σόλωνος τοῦ Λινδίου, ἔστι δὲ ἡ νῦν Πομπηϊούπολις. ἦν δὲ ἐπὶ Πτολεμαίου τοῦ Φιλαδέλφου, καὶ ἐσχόλασε Διονυσίῳ τῷ Ἡρακλεώτῃ, συνῆν δὲ Ἀντιγόνῳ τῷ Μακεδονίας βασιλεῖ καὶ Φίλᾳ τῇ τούτου γαμετῇ, συνήκμασε δὲ Ἀλεξάνδρῳ τῷ Αἰτωλῷ καὶ Καλλιμάχῳ καὶ Μενάνδρῳ καὶ Φιλητᾷ. ἀδελφοὺς δὲ εἶχε τρεῖς, Μύριν Καλώνδαν καὶ Ἀθηνόδωρον, ὃς πρῶτος ἀντειπεῖν λέγεται Ζωίλῳ τῷ κατὰ τῆς ὁμηρικῆς ποιήσεως γράψαντι. σχολάσας δὲ ὁ Ἄρατος Περσαίῳ τῷ φιλοσόφῳ Ἀθήνησι καὶ συνελθὼν αὐτῷ εἰς Μακεδονίαν μεταπεμφθέντι ὑπʼ Ἀντιγόνου καὶ παρελθὼν εἰς τὸν Ἀντιγόνου καὶ Φίλας γάμον καὶ εὐδοκιμήσας, τὸ λοιπὸν τοῦ χρόνου διέτριψεν αὐτόθι. ἦν δὲ Ἀντίγονος υἱὸς Δημητρίου τοῦ Πολιορκητοῦ καὶ παρέλαβε τὴν ἀρχὴν περὶ ἑκατοστὴν καὶ πέμπτην ὀλυμπιάδα, καθʼ ἣν ὁ Πτολεμαῖος ὁ Φιλάδελφος Αἰγύπτου ἐβασίλευεν. ὥστε τὸ διαθρυλλούμενον ὑπό τινων ὡς ἦν κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν χρόνον Νικάνδρῳ τῷ Κολοφωνίῳ τῷ τὰ Θηριακὰ ἐκθεμένῳ καταφανῶς ψεῦδος δείκνυσθαι. δώδεκα γὰρ ὀλυμπιάσιν ὅλαις ὁ Νίκανδρος νεώτερος φαίνεται. ἔνιοι δέ φασι τὸν Ἄρατον Μνασέου πατρὸς γεγονέναι. Ἀριστοθήρου δέ τινος μαθηματικοῦ ἤκουσεν. ἰατρὸς δὲ προηγουμένως, καὶ ποιητὴς ἐν τοῖς Ἀντιγόνου βασιλείοις. γηραίῳ δὲ τῷ Κυρηναίῳ ἐπεβάλετο, παρʼ οὗ καὶ ἐπιγράμματος ἠξιώθη. συνήκμασε δὲ Νικάνδρῳ τῷ Κολοφωνίῳ τῷ μαθηματικῷ καὶ αὐτῷ θεραπεύοντι ἅμα τὸν αὐτόν. ζηλωτὴν δὲ τοῦτόν φασι γενέσθαι Ὁμήρου, οἱ δὲ Ἡσιόδου μᾶλλον.
The Life of Aratus is a concise prose biography of the Hellenistic poet Aratus of Soli, best known for his didactic poem the Phaenomena. Though transmitted under the name of Plutarch, it is a spurious, pseudo-Plutarchan work likely compiled during the Imperial period. The text provides a summary of the poet's origins, noting his birth in Soli, Cilicia, his education under the philosopher Persaeus in Athens, and his subsequent career. It places particular emphasis on his patronage at the Macedonian court of King Antigonus II Gonatas and his association with other prominent figures of the era, including the poets Callimachus and Alexander Aetolus. The biography frames Aratus's literary achievement, particularly the crafting of the Phaenomena, within the context of his philosophical training and royal connections. It survives within the medieval manuscript tradition of Plutarch's Moral Essays, specifically among collections of spurious biographies such as the Lives of the Ten Orators, which ensured its preservation through the Byzantine and early modern periods. As a primary source for the biographical tradition surrounding Aratus, it has been utilized since antiquity by compilers and commentators to contextualize his work, reflecting the Imperial-era practice of collecting and transmitting anecdotes about notable literary figures.