The Histories, Tacitus
The Histories, Tacitus
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The Histories

Author: Tacitus

Narrator: James Adams

Unabridged: 10 hr 9 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 01/24/2008

Categories: Nonfiction, History


Synopsis

Tacitus, a Roman orator and public official, is considered one of the greatest historians as well as one of the greatest prose stylists of the Latin language. In The Histories, he describes and interprets the period in which he lived, beginning with the political situation that followed Neros death in 69 and ending with the death of Domitian in 96 and the close of the Flavian dynasty. The five books of the history still extant are part of an original work of twelve to fourteen books. The narrative as it now exists, with its magnificent introduction, is a powerfully sustained piece of writing. Because Tacitus was a conscious literary stylist, both his thought and his manner of expression gave life to his work. He wrote in the grand style, helped by the solemn and poetic usage of the Roman tradition, and he exploited the Latin qualities of strength, rhythm, and color.

About Tacitus

Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. Tacitus is considered to be one of the greatest Roman historians. He lived in what has been called the Silver Age of Latin literature, and is known for the brevity and compactness of his Latin prose, as well as for his penetrating insights into the psychology of power politics.


Reviews

Goodreads review by David on June 29, 2016

A Feast of Thrones 29 June 2016 Tacitus' Annals of Imperial Rome, with all of its political maneuverng, backstabbing, plotting, and of course sex (was there sex in the Annals? Actually I'm not really all that sure, it's not like it was some sort of Roman novel, it was a history, and from my experienc......more

Goodreads review by Justin on March 25, 2016

A meaningless rating, that just means "I didn't really enjoy reading this, but I'm glad I did." There's just too much movement of arms and men in the story Tacitus tells to really grab me, too many generals moving and shaking. When he focuses away from generals and onto people, I'm all in. The one-l......more

Goodreads review by Marcos on March 15, 2024

Historiae began at January 1, 69, with Galba in power and proceeded to the death of Domitian, in 96. The work contained 12 or 14 books (it is known only that the Histories and Annals, both now incomplete, totaled 30 books). Only books i–iv and part of book v, for the years 69–70, are extant. They co......more

Goodreads review by Douglas on May 17, 2009

Excellent.......more