The Age of Caesar

What’s It About?: Plutarch’s biographies of five Roman statesmen: Pompey, Julius Caesar, Cicero, Brutus, and Mark Antony. Selected from the Parallel Lives, these works address the question as to how a republic can be protected from their leaders.

My opinion: “How often do you think about the Roman Empire?” is a question that has been asked of many men over the past few months, thanks to a legion of TikTok influencers with nothing better to do. My answer to that is “Several times a week.” I really can’t imagine myself otherwise. History fascinates me, and Ancient Rome just happens to be a field that encompasses a wide range of areas. The rise of Christianity, fall of the Roman religion, Stoicism, lawmaking and public policy, population genetics, linguistics, the Med, art and architecture, great battles, just to name a few. Of course, none of the dudes in these videos are talking about any of this expansively. Many just answering, instead of clarifying whether these TikTokers were asking about specific periods, including the Roman Republic and Roman Empire, clearly don’t think about Rome enough.

Well, it’s high time they do, and that’s where Plutarch comes in.

I had already read his Lives (volumes I and II), Essays, and On Sparta before diving into this, so I knew what I was in for. He is not just a master of biography, he is the master. For those of you not familiar with Plutarch (46-120 AD), he wrote biographies of Greek and Roman statesmen around the year 100 AD.

The biographies contained in this volume are valuable ancillaries to any study of Roman history. Insightful, at times funny, and amazing storytelling above all. Conversational in feel, and rich in anecdote, they are filled with all kinds of interesting details about these figures. That these biographies were written by a man who lived not long after his subjects keeps things fresh.

Plutarch’s focus on these Roman statesmen in this volume also makes for a valuable tool in understanding where we are today. Yes, Julius Caesar may have been arrogant, calculating, and power-hungry, but he was also intelligent, driven, and generous. And the way Plutarch contrasts the views of these men and their insights into the state of the late Roman Republic is fascinating. Power, ambition, and the fragility of institutions… are these men better or worse than the leaders we have today? I don’t know, but I will say there are more than a few common threads.

The influence of Plutarch throughout the millennia cannot be understated. Shakespeare drew on him for at least two of his plays, and reading this volume, you can see why. One, they are awesome. Two, they give such an incredible insight into the human condition. Greed, ambition, love, hate, stupidity, hubris… it’s all there. Napoleon, Edward Gibbon, and Alexander Hamilton were influenced by his work, as were countless others (for more on this, check out How the Classics Made Shakespeare by Jonathan Bate). It makes the fact that we do not teach Plutarch in schools — even when teaching Shakespeare — so much more frustrating.

James Romm’s notes on the text(s) clarify things beautifully, and Pamela Mensch’s translation makes for a smooth, accessible read. Mary Beard’s introduction is a bit light on substance, but as an overall package, The Age of Caesar is superb.

The strengths and weaknesses of these statesmen can often be seen throughout the world today. The question is, where do we find another Plutarch?

This is one of many reasons we should think about the Roman Empire more often.

Get to it.