The Fall of the Roman Republic
Fall 2008
This upper-level lecture class assumes a basic knowledge of Roman history. It will cover the most tumultuous period in Roman history, that which stretches from 133 B.C. to the establishment of Octavian (Augustus) as the first emperor in 27 B.C. This was the age of the great generals (Marius, Sulla, Pompey, Caesar); of great oratory (Cicero), of amazing changes in the city of Rome itself, in Italy, and in the ever-growing provinces; an age of shifting political alliances, howling crowds, and the eventual transformation of a Republic into a monarchy. How did this come about? Could the Republic maintain an empire, or was the dominance of one man unavoidable? We will read mostly primary sources in translation, averaging about 140 pages a week; there will be sporadic discussions, a midterm, a final, one 5-6 page paper, and one 10-12 page paper. Reading will be drawn from:
H.H. Scullard, From the Gracchi to Nero (fifth edition, 1982)
Plutarch, Makers of Rome and The Fall of the Roman Republic (Penguin)
Sallust, Jugurthine War and Conspiracy of Catiline (Penguin, transl. Woodman 2007)
Julius Caesar, Civil Wars and Gallic War (Oxford)
M. Tullius Cicero, On Government and Selected Political Speeches (Penguin)
and a course packet