Roman Historiography

During this course the different forms of Historiography are studied. The main features, the language, the style and the distinctive qualities of the basic representatives of Roman Historiography are some of the main subjet-matters of the course. Representative passages from Caesar, Nepos, Sallustius, Livy and Tacitus are examined closely.

Objectives

-The overall aim of the course is the study of Roman Historiography. -By the end of the course, students are expected to know the different forms of Roman Historiography and its representatives, whose works have been studied during the lectures. Furthermore they will be familiarized with the main features of the language and the style of the particular authors as well as the overall historical, political and cultural context, which is revealed by the respective works.

Prerequisites

Syllabus

Α. Introduction to Roman Historiography: Within the introductory lectures of the course, the different forms of Roman Historiography are pointed out. Students are acquainted with the main features, the language, the style and the distinctive qualities of the basic representatives of Roman Historiography. Β. Study of representative passages form the authors of Roman Historiography: The study of the passages of Ceasar (De Bello Gallico ΙΙ 15 and De Bello CiviliΙ 32), Nepos (Miltiades 4, 1-3, Themistocles 2, 6-8, Alcibiades 3, 1-4, Atticus 16), Sallust (De coniuratione Catilinae κεφ. 1-6), Livy (Ab urbe condita: the Preface and ch. 1,2 and 4) and Tacitus (Annales 1-5 and Agricola ch. 1) on the level of language and style and under the light of the historical events underscores the social and political context to which the respective passages refer to. As far as the tree main historians (Sallustius, Livy and Tacitus), who belong respectively to the Repubican, the Augustan and the Imperial Period, are concerned, a comparative study of the prefaces to their works is attempted. Thus, the main principles and the ideals of the Roman culture as well as each author’s development and variation are evinced explicitly.