Suetonius' Lives of the Caesars is one of the most important sources for the early days of the Principate. Suetonius includes all sorts of fascinating biographical details about the men he describes--along with plenty of sometimes unverifiable gossip and rumor.Please read Suetonius' account of Augustus, Tiberius, Gaius (Caligula), Claudius, or Nero. Pick a line that illustrates particularly well either the emperor's achievements or the way in which that emperor's life was a personal tragedy, or a tragedy for the people of Rome. Explain your choice.
We will talk about your line selections in class.
I have chosen two lines, but both are equally important to my case:
ReplyDelete"His grandmother Augusta [Arkenberg: i.e., Livia] always treated him with the utmost contempt, very rarely speaking to him; and when she admonished him, she did so in short, harsh letters, or through messengers. When his sister Livina heard that he would one day be emperor, she openly and loudly prayed that the Roman people might be spared so cruel and undeserved a fortune."
We can see here that Claudius, already having the misfortune of being in poor health (both mind and body), is oftentimes bullied by his family. They seem to not care for him, mocking him and using his disabilities against him to make him feel lame and stupid. It is no wonder to me now why he was so wishy-washy when he did become emperor - he was likely trying to make everyone happy, a behavioral trait that many children who grew up with overly-critical parents would be well aware of.
We look at these two sentences and we can recognize that Claudius may not have had a happy life at all, instead being largely miserable and surrounded by cruel individuals until his poisoning that resulted in his death.
And, due to these living conditions, the people of Rome may have been impacted, as they did not have a confident emperor when he obtained the title. Instead, they got an emperor who sought only to do what other told him to. This could mean that things could have been worse, yes, but they could have also been better.
“He castrated the boy Sporus and actually tried to transform him into a woman. He married him with all the usual ceremonies, including a dowry and a bridal veil, took him to his palace attended by a great crowd, and treated him as his wife.”
ReplyDeleteI have always found this story quite disturbing. It shows how Nero’s life became a tragedy both for himself and for Rome. Instead of acting like a wise ruler, he used his power in cruel and shocking ways. Nero forced a young boy named Sporus to live as a woman and even held a fake wedding to make it seem real. This act shows how Nero had lost all sense of morality, his grief and desires turned into something twisted. For the people of Rome it was a sign that their emperor had gone mad. Caring more about his strange fantasies than his duties as leader.
"When the death of Claudius [54 C.E.] was made public, Nero, who was seventeen years old, went forth to the watch between the sixth and seventh hour, since no earlier time for the formal beginning of his reign seemed suitable because of bad omens throughout the day. Hailed emperor on the steps of the Palace, he was carried in a litter to the Praetorian camp, and after a brief address to the soldiers was taken from there to the Curia, which he did not leave until evening, of the unbounded honors that were heaped upon him refusing but one, the title of father of his country, and that because of his youth".
ReplyDeleteOut of all the terrible and foolish things Nero did this quote seems almost meaningless to as it being a tragedy for the Roman people. But I would argue that this quote is more meaningful then we think. This shows that Nero was only 17 at the time of Claudius's death, and was sworn in the same day he died. I believe this is a tragedy for the Roman people, because all of his reign was a tragedy. But there is a change that if Nero was raised better, and was much older when he finally took over control of the Empire. After he had time to see the problems of Rome, mature into adult hood, and experience some hardships in life he may have been a much better Emperor for Rome.
Dylan -
ReplyDelete“He watched the city burn from the tower of Maecenas, and, exulting in what he called ‘the beauty of the flames,’ sang the Sack of Troy in stage costume.”
I chose this line from Nero's because it shows how much of a tragedy it was for the Roman people to have him as an emperor. He was truly unfit to rule and only cared about his artistic abilities. He was detached from reality and obviously only cared about himself. It really wasn't 100% Nero's fault for the way he turned out. He became Emperor at a very young age, and I am sure he couldn't handle it mentally, which led to his eventual breakdown.
“He inflicted unheard-of punishments on those whom he hated.”
ReplyDeleteI chose this line from Nero's because it shows that no matter what he is willing to do anything to anyone that doesn't believe what he believes or doesn't do what he wants them to do. In the same passage he also talks about killing his brother, mother, and sister as well, so he's really not afraid to kill anyone in his way of getting what he wants. This shows just how cruel and unfair he was as a ruler leading to tragedy for his people because they have to do what ever he wants or they die.
"He was for ten years a member of the triumvirate for restoring the State to order, and though he opposed his colleagues for some time and tried to prevent a proscription, yet when it was begun, he carried it through with greater severity than either of them. For while they could oftentimes be moved by personal influence and entreaties, he alone was most insistent that no one should be spared, even adding to the list his guardian Gaius Toranius, who had also been the colleague of his father Octavius in the aedileship. Julius Saturninus adds that after the proscription was over Marcus Lepidus addressed the Senate in justification of the past and held out hope of leniency thereafter, since enough punishment had been inflicted; but that Augustus on the contrary declared that he had consented to end the proscription only on condition that he was allowed a free hand for the future"
ReplyDeleteI liked this line because it demonstrates the tragedy that Augustus brought upon the people. While initially opposed to proscription it his use without discrimination really hurt the people. This part of his life hurt many citizens of Rome by putting them to death and claiming their estates for money. It was a rough time for citizens and a tragedy upon the Roman people and Augustus' life.
"Many men of honorable rank were first disfigured with the marks of branding-irons and then condemned to the mines, to work at building roads, or to be thrown to the wild beasts; or else he shut them up in cages on all fours, like animals, or had them sawn asunder. Not all these punishments were for serious offences, but merely for criticizing one of his shows, or for never having sworn by his Genius."
ReplyDeleteThis line from Suetonius on Caligula gives a glimpse of how bad of a man he truly was. In a way, this shows tragedy both for Caligula, and also for Roman people. It's tragic for Caligula because, along with this example, there are many others that show just how awful and tyrannic of a person he was. As we see here, he had people brutally punished for just simply criticizing his shows...that's insane. This excerpt also shows obvious elements of tragedy for the Roman people. The punishments were inhumane and disgusting, and, as we see here, they were done to people for such small reasons, such as criticizing a show. It's kind of crazy how he could just do whatever he wanted to as emperor of Rome, and he did indeed do some bad things. But, at the end of the day, he was a human just like me, and I have my flaws as well.