Histories (Tacitus)
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Histories (
Together, the Histories and the
By the time Tacitus had completed the Histories, it covered Roman history from AD 69, following Nero's death, to AD 96, the end of Domitian's reign. The Annals deals with the five decades before Nero, from AD 14, the reign of Tiberius, to AD 68, when Nero died.[1]
Subject matter
In one of the first chapters of the
Tacitus wrote the Histories 30 years later, not long after Nerva's seizure of power, which bore similarities to the events of the year 69, when four emperors — Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian — each took power in quick succession. The mode of their accession showed that because imperial power was based on the support of the legions, an emperor could now be chosen not only at Rome, but anywhere in the empire where sufficient legions were amassed.[citation needed]
Nerva, like Galba, came to the throne by senatorial designation, after the violent death of the previous emperor, Domitian. Like Galba, Nerva had to deal with a revolt of Praetorians and like Galba, he had designated his successor by the traditional expedient of adoption. Galba, described by Tacitus as a feeble old man, had chosen a successor unable, due to his severity, to obtain the faith and the control of the troops. Nerva, instead, had consolidated his power by making a link between the throne and Trajan, who was general of the Upper Rhine legions and popular throughout the army. It is probable that Tacitus was a member of the imperial council in which Trajan was chosen to be adopted.
Ideology
In the first book of the Historiae, a speech put in the mouth of Galba makes clear Tacitus' ideological and political position. Galba's pure respect for formality and lack of political realism rendered him unable to control events. In contrast, Nerva adopted Trajan, who was able to keep the legions unified, to keep the army out of imperial politics, to stop disorder among the legions, and thus to prevent rival claimants to the throne. Tacitus was sure that only the principatus (the "prince", that is, the monarchical emperor) could maintain peace, the fidelity of the armies, and the cohesion of the empire.
Discussing
Style
The style of narration is rapid, reflecting the speed of the events. The narrative rhythm leaves no space to slow down or digress. To write effectively in this style, Tacitus had to summarize substantial information from his sources. Sometimes he skips parts; more usually he divides the story into single scenes and, in this way, creates a dramatic narration.
Tacitus is a master at describing a mass of people. He knows how to portray the mass when it is calm; he knows equally how to show the threat of insurrection and panic-stricken flight.[opinion]
Tacitus writes from the point of view of an aristocrat. He shows fear, mixed with disdain, for the soldiers' tumult and for the rabble of the capital. He also holds in low esteem those members of the Senate whose behavior he describes with malice, insisting upon the contrast between their public image and the unconfessable reality: adulation, conspiracy, and ambition. The Historiae is a grim work; it speaks throughout of violence, dishonesty, and injustice.
Tacitus skillfully shows the characters, alternating short and sharp notations with complete portraits. His technique is similar to that of Sallust: incongruency, parataxis, and loose stylistic structure combine to make the characters sharp. The influence of Sallust is clear in the rest of Tacitus' style as well. Tacitus improves on the method, stressing the tension between gravitas, which connects the narrative with the past, and pathos, which makes it dramatic. Tacitus loves ellipsis of verbs and conjunctions. He uses irregular constructs and frequent changes of subject, to give variety and movement to the narration. It often happens that when a sentence seems finished, it is extended with a surprising tail that adds a comment, which is usually alluding or indirect.[citation needed]
It has been theorized that Tacitus' style is based on that of
Content
Book | Subject |
---|---|
1 | Reign of Galba, then Otho. Vitellius threatens Otho's reign. |
2 | Otho loses to Vitellius at Bedriacum; Otho's suicide. Vitellius ascends to the emperorship, is challenged by Vespasian. |
3 | Vitellius is challenged by Vespasian in Italy. Vitellius's forces collapse, and Vitellius is murdered by Vespasian's troops. |
4 | Batavian units of the Roman Army revolt, beginning of the Batavian War. Vespasian and his son Domitian are discussed.. |
5 | Titus is placed in command of the First Jewish–Roman War. Batavian War ends. |
See also
References
- ^ ISBN 0-520-04427-4.
- ISBN 978-0-19-282421-9.
- ^ Bartlett, Brett (July 2014). "Justin's Epitome: The unlikely adaptation of Trogus' world history" (PDF). Histos. 8: 250. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
Further reading
- ISBN 0-19-814327-3.
- ISBN 978-0-521-57822-6