Why men should read the works of Sallust

The men read historical works for many reasons. Sometimes they want to be
educated; at other times, they prefer entertainment. But when a work can
combine these two things in a convincing and evocative style, the reward is
much greater. Caius Crispus Salluste, known simply as Sallust, is one of
those rare historians whose works have reached a timeless thanks to their
incomparable balance of entertainment and education.

Who was Sallust?
Gaius Crispus Salluste was born in 86 BC in the city of Amiternum, which
was located northeast of Rome. His family seems to have been of modest
means, and he could receive a decent education in Rome. We know very little
about his past life; but not its aristocratic origins may provide a clue to
explain the seething antagonism of the historian to the nobility.
Judging by the accusations of moral looseness made against him by his
political enemies, we can guess that he enjoyed as a youngster. He was
totally involved in the turbulent politics and violent factions of his
time. The end result of his forays into politics was Sallust was expelled
from the Senate in 50 BC. AD for alleged moral turpitude.
Cicero denounced Catiline in the Roman Senate
Her pink star with Julius Caesar. In 47 B.C. following the battle of
Pharsalia, the event which won Caesar's victory in the Civil War, Sallust
was able to return to the Senate. In this faithful service to Caesar
continued to the end. He went with him to Africa in 46 BC. AD to mop up the
remains of Pompey's forces. Sallust remained there as governor of Numidia
when Caesar left. Nevertheless, the time of Sallust in Numidia was marked
by controversy; he is said to have engaged in corruption and extortion.
When he returned to Rome around 45 BC. BC, formal charges were filed
against him; the intervention of his patron Caesar apparently saved him
from condemnation. He retired from public life in 44 B.C. and dedicated
later to literary activities. His works filled survivors are the two
historical monographs Conspiracy of Catiline and the War of Jugurtha.
What to write?
The conspiracy of Catiline recounts the story of a failed coup d state by a
renegade senator named Lucius Catilina. We can not be sure of the year of
its composition, sometimes a date between 44 and 40 BC. AD is probably
correct. It is likely that the work was intended for a popular audience
that would a hungry racy account, pallid events that led to the takeover
attempt. But like any great historian, Sallust manages to take a relatively
minor episode and elevate to the supreme moral significance. Catiline
manages to be both an exciting drama and extremely relevant study of the
pathology of moral corruption.
The war of Jugurtha (Bellum Jugurthinum) is a longer work, more complex and
rich in layers. It was probably composed in 41 BC, but Sallust must have
started collecting source material for the book during his time in Numidia.
The work describes the origin and conduct of the war of Rome against the
Numidian king Jugurtha tricky. Jugurtha is, in some respects, as a manual
severely neglected against insurgency in the North African context.
What are the themes of Sallust?
The opening passages of both works brilliantly tone in a way that really
has to be read to be believed. Three Sallustian motifs appear repeatedly in
his works: moral corruption, fortune and virtue. He is passionately
concerned about the moral decay caused by excessive wealth. As the prologue
of Catiline is very clear (X-XIII), Sallust believed that military
procurement of the Roman Empire in expansion set in motion a process of
moral corruption and political disintegration.
But this process of disintegration could be reversed by implementing the
manners and virtues of "our ancestors" (mos Maiorum). While fortune seems
to have the last word in human affairs (Cat. VIII), it can still be very
much influenced by the virtue of a man (Virtus). Virtus to Sallust meant
virility, courage and strength of character. For Sallust, an adverse change
in fortune is usually the result of a degenerate behavior caused by corrupt
morals. If so, then the reverse is also true: a man who would divert
fortune in his favor by exercising his male virtue.
Her anger and pain to the failure of his countrymen to preserve the
character and moral qualities of their ancestors are expressed in the first
chapters of Jugurtha (I-IV). For Sallust, character is everything. Without
it, a man is inconsequential; it will forever remain a useful pawn for the
rich and powerful.
 Jugurtha & # 8221 Table; in Tunisia
His writing style is bold, masculine, rhetorically light and brief. Every
sentence, every clause, has a purpose. He wastes no time giving too much
background information in his stories. The basic ethnographic information,
overlooking North Africa in Jugurtha (XVII-XIX) is only as long as it
should be, and no more. He did not fulminate against or denounce the
characters in his stories; he established his own value system, describes
the actions of principals and expects his readers to draw their own
conclusions from what they read.
What remains are historical accounts of the spartan but great beauty. Among
the many unforgettable passages in Sallust, the following stand out: the
first paragraphs of the two works; the indictment of corruption in Roman
Cat. And XXXVI. seq.; the frightening description of the battlefield
bloodied in Jug. THIS; death struggle against Catiline and wailing
survivors in Cat. LXI; the brilliant speech of Caesar, Cato and Marius;
spectators circling the cavalry battle Jug. LX; the massacre of the Roman
garrison trapped in Vaga Jug. LXVII; the fall of Capsa and its brutal
consequences in Jug. XCI; and the strange legend Philaeni brothers in Jug.
LXXIX. Once read, these passages are never forgotten.
Why Salluste so relevant today?
At the heart of the world view of Sallust was the idea that a man's
character would ultimately determine its fate. Small defects, over time,
could very well become great defects. He had seen and experienced first
hand how greed, corruption and self-delusion could prove to be the ruin of
men, armies and nations. Who today, watching the news landscape, can doubt
that our culture has paid too little attention to this eternal truth?
Sallust's lessons resonate more strongly today than they ever have,
precisely because our culture is literally drowning in pride, arrogance and
corruption. This was one of the driving forces that allow me to publish a
new translation of his works that was specially designed for the modern
reader, which would include detailed notes, maps, diagrams, charts, news
and charts other features. Unless we want to follow the same road to ruin
traced by men like Catiline and Jugurtha Sallust warns, we must do our best
to control and discipline us. The choice is ours. Click here to learn more
about the book.
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