Product Description
The histories of Roman senator Cornelius Tacitus constitute the most influential examination of tyranny, political behavior and public morality from the classical age. For centuries these portraits of courageous martyrs to freedom, of paranoid tyrants, and of sycophantic flatteres and informers shaped modern political attitudes. Ronald Mellor provides a compelling analysis of the ideas of the greatest historian of evil in the western intellectual tradition.

In Tacitus, Ronald Mellor passionately argues for reclaiming this ironic genius whose cynical world view is particularly well-suited to an analysis of the tyranny and brutality in our own century.

Tacitus is presented as a moralist, psychologist, political analyst and literary artist. Tacitus' greatest impact has never been on historians. Rather, his political vision and dramatic images left their mark on painters, poets and thinkers. ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Germanic peoples; Rome; Germany; Germanic tribes; History / Ancient / General; History / Ancient / Rome; History / Europe / Germany; ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1885.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishings Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the worlds literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

good product
Good product, and good service. My experience with Amazon and there vendors have been everything they claim. will continue doing business with them. ... Read more

Product Description
This now-classic work seeks to place Tacitus in his social and political context.Syme not only analyzes in detail Tacitus's writings, their development and style, but also his political career, using his progress through government to illustrate the process that brought new men from the western provinces to success and primacy at Rome. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Definitive Exploration On Imperial Rome's Great Historian
I read this book for a graduate course in Roman history.It is an indispensable primary source for students of Roman history.

On the first page of his Annals of Imperial Rome, Tacitus wrote that Octavian "seduced the army with bonuses, and his cheap food policy was successful bait for civilians."Tacitus' description of Augustus' transformation of Rome from a republic into an empire is most illuminating as well."Upper-class survivors found that slavish obedience was the way to succeed, both politically and financially.They had profited from the revolution, and so now they liked the security of the existing arrangement better than the dangerous uncertainties of the old regime."

Sir Ronald Syme relied heavily on the work of Tacitus for his cogent narrative of Octavian's rise to power as Augustus.Syme's in-depth study of Tacitus' life and work was published in 1958.Tacitus' historical accuracy was doubted for centuries and Syme made a project of re-evaluating the accuracy of his historical writings.Syme believed that Tacitus was in a unique position to write about the birth and early political history of the Imperial period in Rome due to his very active political life.Tacitus had served as a senator, consul, and proconsul of Asia.In addition, he was known to be an excellent orator in his day.In his writings, Syme believed that Tacitus provided excellent accounts of Augustus' rise to power and his career as Rome's first Emperor.

Tacitus delved into the machinery of the new government, including Augustus' use of patronage as well as his many thwarted attempts at planning for his own succession.What Syme found was a man that grew very adept politically and whose political maturity rapidly developed at an early age.At eighteen, he was named as heir to Julius Caesar.He grew into the greatest Roman princeps spanning fifty-six years until his death.Augustus knew that to retain power he had to maintain the general consent of the governed.He astutely maintained order not by following the constitution or past precedent, but by using the tremendous resources at his disposal.Augustus kept the plebeians in check making sure they were fed, kept them amused with games, and constantly reminded them that he was protecting them from the oppression of the nobiles.

Augustus became the "leader of a large and well organized political party as the source and fount of patronage and advancement."

Recommended reading for those interested in Roman history, military history.

More Genius from Syme
This book is not for the faint of heart -- and I hesitated for some time over how to rate this book. One does require a working knowledge of Tacitus' life and of Roman history and traditions. The book was written in the late 1950's when, annoyingly, certain classicists felt that it was beneath them to translate their citations from the original latin. Today we often regard this practice as having the patina of snobbishness and elitism. Again and again one encounters paragraphs where the key thought is embodied (entombed is more like it!)in one of Tactitus' remarks -- but in Latin!

This however, is a quibble. There is enough of this book that is readable to render it a vastly worthwhile undertaking. But be prepared! Have a good translation of Tacitus to hand -- together with a classical dictionary, a latin dictionary and Barrington's recently published Atlas of the Ancient World (which, by the way, was one of the most wondrous things to be published in the last few decades).

If you are prepared to put the work in, Syme, and Tacitus, will reward you. Victor Davis Hanson referred to The Roman Revolution, Syme's more accessible work, as a work of "Tacitean brilliance". And there is no question that Tacitus style and wit have rubbed off on Syme.

Here is Syme, encapsulating Cicero, on the writing of history:

"Now the fundamental laws of history, as all men know and concede, are veracity and honesty. But history calls for style and composition. It is not enough to record the events, they must be interpreted and judged, with movement and eloquence in keeping. The orator will supply what is needed."

And on the Roman view of the afterlife:

"The shadowy hope of a shadowy existence did not convince the traditional Roman of the governing order. The sole and solid propect of survival lay in good deeds, with good repute thereafter to posterity. Hence the preoccupation with fame -- sharp, insistent, and dominant. Even philosophers, who impugned the validity of the opinion, could not deny or repel the tempations of glory."

Let there be no mistake about it, Syme was one of the most thought-provoking and influential scholars of the last century. His death was a terrible loss. Syme's Tacitus is an excellent study (for it is not a biography)of Tactius, his work and his times. But the road to this book lies through The Roman Revolution -- read that first. If it is to your taste, drive on! ... Read more

Product Description
CORNELlI TA8ITI DE VITA IULII AGRICOLAE LIBER CIa.rorum virorum facta moresque posteris trad.ere,l anti.q uitus usita. tum, ne no-stris quidem temporibus quall)quam incuriosa suo~um aetas amisit, quotiens magna ~.l~qua ac nobilis virtus vicit ac supergre.ssa est vitium parvis magnisque civitatibus commune, ignoran- 5 tia,IT. recti ~t invidiam. Sed apud priorcs ~ agerc digna memora.tu pronum magisque in apcrto crat, ita celeberrimus quisque ingenio ad prodendarn virt.ufu ~ernoIi~~l' sine' 'gratia 'aut ambitione ..QQnac_tantum '"? ~cientiae pre~ ducebatur. Ac plerique suam ipsi 10 vitam narraTe fiduci.am potim~ morum quam adroganti.'. l.m arbitrati sunt; nec id Rutilio et SC3.uro citra fidem aut obtrectationi (uit: adeo virtutes isdem temporibus optime ae.stimantur, quibus facillime gignuntur. At nunc narraturo mihi vitam defuncti hominis venia opus 15 fuit, quam non petissem incusaturus hm s&eva et infe. st:l. virtutibus tcmpora. L~gimu~, cum Arulcn~ RustielS r

Table of Contents

CONTENTS; b""l'RODVOTIO~ :; 1 Tho Lire of Tacitus; II, 'Vritin~; HI rurposo and Literary }<'onn of the A(J,?cola; IV 1'110 Style of 1'acitus; V ~[anuscl'ipts of be A(Jricola; VI Editions and 'VorkB of Reference; TEXT; Nons; CRITICAL ,AI'l'E~OIX; ?; PAO~; ix; xiv; xv; , xix; ? Xxv; , xx"j; 1; 81; ? 106

About the Publisher

Forgotten Books is a publisher of historical writings, such as: Philosophy, Classics, Science, Religion, History, Folklore and Mythology.

Forgotten Books' Classic Reprint Series utilizes the latest technology to regenerate facsimiles of historically important writings. Careful attention has been made to accurately preserve the original format of each page whilst digitally enhancing the difficult to read text. Read books online for free at www.forgottenbooks.org ... Read more

Product Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Product Description
Tacitus (ca. 56 – ca. 117) was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those that reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors. These two works span the history of the Roman Empire from the death of Augustus in 14 AD to the death of emperor Domitian in 96 AD.

... Read more

Product Description
This book is a literary analysis of the language and style of Tacitus' Annals. The political context of first-second century AD Rome is also taken into consideration. In analysis of particular passages close attention is given to the structure of the Latin, which is fully translated. Issues relating to the study of narrative, Roman politics and theories of history are addressed in the course of the discussion. ... Read more

Product Description

Table of Contents:

Customer Reviews (2)

Excellent Kindle edition
This Kindle text includes all of the surviving works by Tacitus, all but one translated by the excellent team of Church & Brodribb; the Histories were translated by Fyfe. There is even a pretty decent biographical essay at the end. Altogether, an excellent value.

Roman history / Military history
Works of Cornelius Tacitus. Includes Agricola, The Annals, A Dialogue Concerning Oratory, Germania andThe Histories. Published by MobileReference (mobi).

Praise of Tacitus would be superfluous; but Kindle edition is pure gold, the publishers have graciously included everything in one ebook, and deserve 5 stars for the effort. Buy this ebook!

... Read more

Product Description
As the first historical work by Rome's greatest historian, the Histories hold a crucial place in the study of Latin literature. Book I covers the beginning of the infamous "Year of the Four Emperors" (69 c.e.), which brought imperial Rome to the brink of destruction after the demise of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Its account of the ensuing power struggles is unmatched for detail and interest. This edition includes the Latin text and provides a complete commentary accessible to students of intermediate level as well as an extensive introduction discussing historical, literary and stylistic issues. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great commentary, poor copy editing.
Tacitus was a brilliant writer who would have felt at ease in a round table with Toynbee, Mommsen, Hegel, or any of the other historiography giants. If I could score him separately he would undoubtedly receive 5 stars. Jump anywhere into either the Historiae or the Annales and you can immediately recognize his unparalleled command of Latin prose. His relentless attention to word choice and construction bespeaks a continuous and boundless energy which leaves the reader with no desire to pause. The speeches approach Thucydides' rhetorical richness. Well-calculated ambiguities of language, sly moral insinuation, and an engaging multi-linear narrative all coalesce into a largely reliable masterpiece of history. Lastly, Thomas Jefferson admired him as being "the first modern author" and that's gotta count for something.

Damon effectively fleshes out omitted material where Tacitus' style becomes terse and has done wonderful cross-referencing with Suetonius, Cassius Dio, Plutarch, and a few others. She does not often seem as interested in exploring the subtleties of the language as much as the content. Nevertheless, her perceptions shine when pointing out Tacitus' verbal irony between seemingly disparate excerpts in the Historiae.

The only major drawback to this edition of Hist. Liber I is the copy editing. Every single page of the text contained at least one typo, be it a missed space, added space, or letters mistakenly added/dropped. Usually this did not affect comprehension (but I vividly remember when an "e" should have been an "et"!) and having Damon's commentary more than makes up for the egregious publication flaws. The typographical errors are more frequent and glaring than in any professionally published classical work I have yet encountered, and I suspect that Damon has given a few people at Cambridge an well-deserved earful.

Do buy this book if you would like to try reading Tacitus in the original. Overall, Damon is very helpful in understanding Tacitus' place in the serious study of Roman history. ... Read more

Product Description
The Histories is the first historical work by Rome's most accomplished and challenging historian, Tacitus. It narrates the brutal civil wars which broke out in AD 68-9 across the Roman Empire after the suicide of the last Julio-Claudian emperor, Nero. Book II covers the bloody finale of the war between two of those emperors, Otho and Vitellius, and the emerging challenge from the eventual victor, Vespasian. The progression of events, kaleidoscopic and gripping, unfolds over a broad geographical sweep and is presented by Tacitus with consummate artistry. This commentary on Histories Book II, the first in English for twenty-five years, elucidates historical questions, clarifies Tacitus' historiographical techniques and explains grammatical difficulties of the Latin for students. It also includes a Latin text, relevant maps, and a comprehensive introduction discussing historical, literary and stylistic questions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Complete and interesting commentary
The commentary is weighted more toward historical and literary explanation and analysis than grammatical.It is not as thorough, from a historical perspective, as Chilver's commentary, but in addition to a more up-to-date perspective and (extensive) bibliography, Ash includes notes on historiographical and stylistic considerations.As a result, one does not "outgrow" this edition, but can keep coming back for insights and aid.I only hope that Cambridge decides to continue the series through Histories III, IV & V. ... Read more

Product Description
The Latin text, with English notes. ... Read more

Product Description
The first in a four-volume edition of Tacitus Annals 1-6. The Annals are Tacitus' brilliant account of Roman imperial history from the death of Augustus to the death of Nero. Books 1-6 describe the reign of Tiberius. Professor Goodyear's introduction to the series deals concisely with the background to the Annals. He outlines the history of Tacitean scholarship to the present day and shows how Tacitus' historical judgements were sometimes distorted by his preoccupations with style and with the moral function of historical writing. The commentary attends equally to literary, historical and textual questions. There are several appendixes on topics of more specialized interest. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Definitive Primary Source On the History OfImperial Roman
I read this book for a graduate course in Roman history.It is an indispensable primary source for students of Roman history.

On the first page of his Annals of Imperial Rome, Tacitus wrote that Octavian "seduced the army with bonuses, and his cheap food policy was successful bait for civilians."Tacitus' description of Augustus' transformation of Rome from a republic into an empire is most illuminating as well."Upper-class survivors found that slavish obedience was the way to succeed, both politically and financially.They had profited from the revolution, and so now they liked the security of the existing arrangement better than the dangerous uncertainties of the old regime."

Sir Ronald Syme relied heavily on the work of Tacitus for his cogent narrative of Octavian's rise to power as Augustus.Syme's in-depth study of Tacitus' life and work was published in 1958.Tacitus' historical accuracy was doubted for centuries and Syme made a project of re-evaluating the accuracy of his historical writings.Syme believed that Tacitus was in a unique position to write about the birth and early political history of the Imperial period in Rome due to his very active political life.Tacitus had served as a senator, consul, and proconsul of Asia.In addition, he was known to be an excellent orator in his day.In his writings, Syme believed that Tacitus provided excellent accounts of Augustus' rise to power and his career as Rome's first Emperor.

Tacitus delved into the machinery of the new government, including Augustus' use of patronage as well as his many thwarted attempts at planning for his own succession.What Syme found was a man that grew very adept politically and whose political maturity rapidly developed at an early age.At eighteen, he was named as heir to Julius Caesar.He grew into the greatest Roman princeps spanning fifty-six years until his death.Augustus knew that to retain power he had to maintain the general consent of the governed.He astutely maintained order not by following the constitution or past precedent, but by using the tremendous resources at his disposal.Augustus kept the plebeians in check making sure they were fed, kept them amused with games, and constantly reminded them that he was protecting them from the oppression of the nobiles.

Augustus became the "leader of a large and well organized political party as the source and fount of patronage and advancement."

Recommended reading for those interested in Roman history, military history.
... Read more

Product Description
Updated to include the findings of archaeological investigation over the century, it serves to lift the veil that shrouded the pre-history of the Germanic peoples and the process of their expansion over central Europe. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Invaluable to the Modern Historian
In the Germania, one of Tacitus' most valuable works, the author gives a First and Second Century look at the various Germanic tribes that hovered outside the eastern border of Roman Gaul. Beginning with a general geographic introduction, he reviews the culture all the various tribes shared, their religion, their war cries, their marriage and funeral rites, and the German way of war.In the remaining chapters, Tacitus describes the various tribes of the Germans and their location to one another and to major rivers and mountains; this is invaluable to the modern historian and is the most complete study of the Germany of late Rome.

Tacitus' writing is clear and thorough, giving us a consistent and accurate picture of the Germany of his day, a swirling cauldron of tribes filled with young men who fight bravely, though often just for the fun of it.We get a clear glimpse of the German character, his rites and his habits, his strengths and his weaknesses.There is no other book quite like it, and in its four dozen short chapters we come to know not only who waited outside Rome's borders, but why Tacitus thought they were a reason for concern.

While there's not much to not like about Germania, I do think Tacitus overplays the innocent virtue of the Germans, drawing too many parallels between their character that of the old Roman Republic. While his political purpose was important to him, it is less important to us, if only because we can see in hindsight that the Germans were not so different from the Romans in the end. That they didn't have wealth and splendor does not mean they didn't desire it; it only means that they had not yet acquired it.It will turn out, however, that they are as willing to take it from the Romans as the Romans were from everyone else. ... Read more