'I, Claudius' by Robert Graves is a historical fiction novel written in the form of an autobiography of the Roman Emperor Claudius, depicting the ruthless tale of greed, backstabbing, political intrigue, and murder within the imperial court of ancient Rome. The book follows Claudius' journey from being an overlooked and stuttering member of the imperial family to becoming the third Caesar to rise to emperor, all while navigating through the complexities of Roman society and the reigns of Augustus, Tiberius, and Caligula.
The narrative is presented in a first-person perspective by Claudius, who is portrayed as an intelligent and reliable narrator, providing insights into the increasingly brutal and mad reigns of his predecessors. The book captures the lurid details of power struggles, betrayals, and relationships within the Roman elite, offering readers a captivating blend of historical facts and fiction set against the backdrop of ancient Rome's political intrigue and societal dynamics.
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From The Publisher:
Considered an idiot because of his physical infirmities, Claudius survived the intrigues and poisonings of the reigns of Augustus, Tiberius, and the Mad Caligula to become emperor in 41 A.D. A masterpiece.
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Published in 1934, this was one of the first novels where a historical personality tells their own story. In this case, it is the Roman emperor Claudius (reigned 41-54 CE) describing how he survived the reigns of Augustus, Tiberius and Caligula when most of his friends and relatives met untimely ends. There is a sequel, Claudius the God, in which he tells the story of his own reign. I was 17 when I first read it and I was completely blown away by it: the characters of Tiberius and Caligula are riveting. I still like it now but I am more critical. Graves based the story very closely on the works of Roman historians such as Suetonius and Tacitus which makes for factual accuracy. But this is a novel so he could easily have left out some episodes (there are times when it gets slightly tedious) and perhaps used more imagination to fill out place and character. One odd feature is that Herod Agrippa was supposedly a close childhood friend of Claudius but he does not appear in I Claudius at all. He is only introduced in Claudius the God, necessitating a long backstory. Perhaps most important of all, there is no way of discerning where Claudius might be misleading in his version of events. We only have his narrative and his enemies and victims would doubtless have had a very different perspective.
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About the Author:
Robert Graves (1895-1985) was a poet, novelist, translator, and author of more than 120 books of history, mythology, and fiction, including the historical novel I, Claudius and the mythological study The White Goddess. Born in England, he made his home in Majorca after…
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