Livy: The Early History of Rome, Books I-V (Penguin Classics) (Bks. 1-5)
by Titus Livy
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Book Summary Information
Author: Titus LivyBrand: Penguin Group USA
Translator: Aubrey De Selincourt
Preface: Stephen Oakley
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2002-06-25
ISBN: 0140448098
Number of pages: 488
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780140448092
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Livy: The Early History of Rome, Books I-V (Penguin Classics) (Bks. 1-5)
Book Review: The study of history is the best medicine for a sick mind
Summary: 5 Stars
My title comes from Livy's opening page and it speaks to what I think is the essential point that one has to think about when deciding whether or not to read Livy. And, by the way, I think that is a serious question. Even in a long life, there are only so many books you can read. To start on Livy in the Penguin Classics edition is to start a reading project of well over two thousand pages.
The answer to the question is dependent on what you are looking for. If you are looking to a well-researched history of early Rome then this volume of Livy (which covers Rome from its founding in the sixth century B.C.E. to 390 BC)is not for you. I recommend T.J. Cornell's The Beginnings of Rome instead.
My point is that Livy is not writing history as we know it. In his introduction, Livy makes it clear that he is trying to hold up to the watered-down Romans of his day the distant mirror of the Romans of the past. He is trying to remind his compatriots of the greatness that was Rome.
What he writes in this volume is a sort of national hagiography. He does so by telling small sequential stories that have moral climaxes usually in a great speech by one of the Romans, speeches that we can only regard as having been totally made up and which share many tropes with the speeches in Homer among other writers.
We apparently have few of the sources that Livy used in his history. Unless I am mistaken, he was largely dependent on the annalistic historical tradition. This accounts for many features of his history- not least the annual listing of who served in what office, what were the auguries that occured during that year and what fantastic omens occurred.
So, in effect, what we have in Livy could be considered a historical novel with few clear lines as to when the novel ends and the history begins. I would guess that the later volumes are founded on more solid history (as we define it) but I reserve judgment on that until I read those later volumes.
But here is the thing. Livy wrote a really good historical novel if such it is. He tells the stories of Aeneus, of Romulus and Remus, of the Tarquins, of the rape of the Sabines, the rape of Lucretia, the battle of the Horatii and the Curiatii, of the fall of the kings, the creation of the consuls, the struggles of the plebians(yeah!) and the patricians(boo!), the creation of the tribunate, and the creation of the military tribunes. We are guided through the almost annual depradations by the dastardly Volscians or the pesky Aequian on through the destruction of Veii and then the sacking of Rome by the Gauls. We come to realize that during this period Rome never started the trouble with the neighbors. It is one of Livy's more obvious moral lessons that the one time that they did start the trouble, the city was sacked. We learn of wonderful, complicated figures such as Marcus Furius Camillus or Coriolanus.
The final argument I will make for a reading of Livy in this brief space is that he serves as an entry point to understanding so many other people and events in later history. For example, our Founding Fathers (no such men exist these days!)felt that the history contained in writers like Livy and Plutarch provided the knowledge needed for understanding government and the world of politics. These writers influenced our history directly. Read the debates at the Constitutional Convention. There is much reference within Madison's Notes to what he learned in Livy among other writers.
Another example- Machiavelli wrote his Discourses as a commentary on Livy. Arguably he changed the history of political theory in so doing.
Another example- Shakespeare based his Roman plays on Livy and Plutarch.
And finally while Livy may not be Roman history as we would understand that term, he is the best of all possible places to start your study of Roman history. His history was very popular. It fit the Roman self-image. That is an important point to grasp in the study of any people. Rome and her history await you in all her glory. Livy is the best door through which to enter. He is a delight to read, he expands your soul and his history is a great medicine for any mind.
p.s. As is probably obvious, I am new to study of ancient history and philosophy. Please feel free to correct any egregious errors in a comment. Learn, I must.
Summary of Livy: The Early History of Rome, Books I-V (Penguin Classics) (Bks. 1-5)
With stylistic brilliance and historical imagination, the first five books of Livy's monumental history of Rome record events from the foundation of Rome through the history of the seven kings, the establishment of the Republic and its internal struggles, up to Rome's recovery after the fierce Gallic invasion of the fourth century B.C. Livy vividly depicts the great characters, legends, and tales, including the story of Romulus and Remus. Reprinting Robert Ogilvie's lucid 1971 introduction, this highly regarded edition now boasts a new preface, examining the text in light of recent Livy scholarship, informative maps, bibliography, and an index.
Translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt with an introduction by Robert Ogilvie.
Translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt with an introduction by Robert Ogilvie.
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