Evening star., 1925-07-21
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THE WOMEN OF THE CAESARS
Guglielmo Ferrero. G. P. Put

|
THE WOMEN OF THE CAESARS.
i Guglielmo Ferrero. G. P. Put
mans Sons.
When you are in Rome you are
sure, on some Sunday afternoon, to
drift along with the rest Of the Sun
day world to hear the music in
room of one of the narrow streets near
the Piazza del Popolo. Within the
little music hall the rowing eye OF
the newcomer catches almost at once
the oddly time worn character of it's
circular foundation. This rounded
base turns out to be an ancient ruin.
in It's day the entrance to q tomo
built for his family out on the Flamin-
ian Way by Augustus Caesar And
straight the mind wanders away
from the rolling music, or is led away
by II, to thoughts of those men ano
women who 1000 years ago In this
same Roman setting accepted the illu'
sion of human power and the dream
of human happiness. perturbins
picture, one that of It's own accord
projects a future 1900 years, upon
whose tide individual life leaves no
faintest sign of having been.
| Guglielmo Ferrero gives here the
story of the women of the Caesars as
an important contribution to the his.
tory of Rome at one of the critical
points in its development. The author
reminds us that in ancient history
women play no part. One of the
reasons that Cleopatra made so great
an impression on her cotemporarie
and became the center of so bizarre
a legend is that she was woman
This feminine apparition, upon
stage completely cluttered With men
seemed extra ordinary But there
is an ancient history that makes eX
ception to this rule. This Is the cen
tury of Rome that lies between the
death OF Caesar and the death OF
Nero. During this period there ap
! peared in Roman politics certain
number of feminine figures, differing
greatly among themselves, but all In
teresting; and all of them, like Cleo
patra. became the centers of legends
that were always bizarre and some
: | times dramatic - This book is an at
tempt to disentangie whatever truth
there is In these romantic outgrowths
of that period.
With the tool kit of the modern
, historian ready to hand, the author
here digs up and spreads out the full
sum of political life for the century
, in question. In effect, he opens that
ancient tomb on the old Flaminiar r
way, evoking its men and women. set
; ting them again in their accustomed
temporal places; prepossessing them
anew with the old thirst for political
power to be expended for the public
welfare on the one hand, for individual
. aggrandiZement on the other. Ii Is
! in the midst of this revived political
complex that the women of the
. Caesars are to be found, political part
ners with their men-fathers. nus
bands sons. In the truth which Fer
rero extracts from its surroundings
of fiction. the figures of Livia and
. lAgrippina stand clear in the aura OF
greatness-one the mother OF Tlberl
! us the other the mother OF Nero
, 1.-The two Julias and Messalina repre-
. sent the lesser women-those around
whom legend and fiction have PLAYED
in devastating effect. The basic fact
, emerging from this modern outlooR
. upon a certain period of ancient his
tory is that women exercised an ac
tive and acknowledged influence in the
, ipolitical life of that time. From this
is derived the fact that each of these
famous women reacted TO this condi
ton of freedom and opportunity ac
cording to the quality of her owr
characters Livia reacted nobly or
the one hand and Messaiina ignoblS
on the other.
J The Women of the Caesars sums
as a vivid picture of an important
era protected along lines of calculateo
simplicity that run identical with
those of the political genius of tha'
, time and place. Lines, these, that
+, at frequent intervals along then
course deepen in sharp emphasis OF
/, woman's part In the public life o
I Rome. This picture becomes one ol
! Immediate interest and appeal
! chiefly by virtue of the author
!. obvious plan of giving to II an at
mosphere of the present while at tho
' same time sedulouslyN holding II II
! fact and sequence to its own periot
!. of Roman history. The effect or this
, combination OF purpose ana pan
that of living drama, of actual con
tact. OF history moved forward alivs
into the present.
| In addition to its interest as bril-
: liant narrative and to its worth a.
: authentic history The Women of th'
4 Caesars serves also the purpose o
: offering TO the great woman question
= of the present a certain means O
4 counting progress as well as opportu
I nity to contrast the conditions under
! living that old day of triumphan
+ woma nhood and this new day. In M
e time at all one gathers the funda
mental difference between the two pc
= riods. In the former the Roman stat'
\ stands supreme. In the latter II Il
s the individual. The Roman woman
: was from childhood dedicated to thu
r state by way of the family. The fam
E lily was all in all, pointed upon th'
l. substance and perpetuity of the state
= not back upon it's individual members
: as holds in our own day. Laws wer,
e made for the family as a whole
e against luxury and extravaganza
n against infdelity. against barrel
j. unions. Divorce was easy-as it il
now-but only when it offered public
= advantage through more powerful al
r rances, or opened the prospect of {
n more numerous Roman progeny. Girl
: were affianced and married as children
f without any choice of their own. Goot
e marriages, too, many of them prove,
: ! to be, an intelligent partnership de
a voted to the common veal. Interest
\ ing, all of 1t, yet OF small practical &C
4 count to the modern woman of politi
q cal bent, since her point of view is, II
n accordance with her times, that of tn,
s freedom of the individual; is that o
I the family pointed back upon it's in
{ dividual members and not forward
i upon the concept of the state How
ever, despite it's differences from tn,
present. this is most interestint
study of one of the high points In tn,
progress of woman from complete oh
scurity to an honorable public recog
2 milton.
\ THE SPECIMEN CASE. Ernest Bra