Cornelius Tacitus: Biography and Creativity

изваяния которого представлено в статье, жил в период приблизительно с середины 50-х по 120-е годы. Publius Cornelius Tacitus, whose photo is presented in the article, lived in the period from about the mid-1950s to the 120s. He is one of the most famous personalities of Ancient Rome.

Cornelius Tacitus: Biography

In his younger years, he combined service as a judicial speaker and political activity. стал сенатором. Subsequently, Cornelius Tacitus became a senator. By 97, he became a consul of the highest magistracy. наблюдал раболепство сената и произвол императорской власти. Rising to the heights of the political Olympus, Cornelius Tacitus observed the servility of the senate and the arbitrariness of the imperial power. After the murder of Domitian, the throne was occupied by the Antonin dynasty. It was this period that was the first, the opinion of which began to express Cornelius Tacitus. , которые он планировал создать, должны были правдиво отражать происходящее. The works that he planned to create, should truly reflect what is happening. To do this, he had to carefully study the sources. He sought to create a complete and accurate picture of events. All the accumulated material he processed and reproduced in his manner. Effective language, an abundance of honed phrases - the basic principles used by Cornelius Tacitus. ориентировался на лучшие образцы латинской литературы. The author was guided by the best examples of Latin literature. Among them were the books of Titus Livius, Cicero, Sallust.

Information from sources

, доподлинно неизвестно. The first name worn by historian Cornelius Tacitus is for certain unknown. Contemporaries called him by name or cognomenum. In the 5th century, Sidonius Apollinarius referred to him as Guy. However, the medieval manuscripts of Tacitus himself were signed Publius. The last and preserved after him. The exact date of birth of Tacitus is also unknown. The appearance of his light is attributed to the 50-th year on the basis of consistency in the occupation of magistracy. родился между 55 и 58 годами. Most researchers agree that Orneli Tacitus was born between 55 and 58 years. The place of his birth is also unknown. There is evidence that he was absent several times in Rome. One of them was connected with the death of his father-in-law Agricola, whose life will later be stated in one of the works.

Cornelius Tacitus: photo, origin

It is believed that his ancestors were from southern France or Italy. The cognomen "Tacitus" was used in the formation of Latin names. It comes from a word, which in translation means "to be quiet", "silent." Most often, the cognomen "Tacitus" was used in Narbonne and Tsisalpine Gaul. From this, researchers conclude that the Celtic roots of the family.

Training

которого впоследствии станут широко известными во всем Древнем Риме, получил очень хорошее образование. Cornelius Tacitus, whose works will later become widely known throughout ancient Rome, received a very good education. Presumably, the teacher of rhetoric was first Quintilian, and then - Julius Secund and Mark Apr. Apparently, no one taught him philosophy, since he subsequently reacted with sufficient restraint to her and to thinkers in general. Greater success Cornelius Tacitus achieved in public speeches. This is evidenced by the words of Pliny the Younger.

"Candidate of Caesar"

женился на дочери Гнея Юлия Агриколы. In 76-77, Cornelius Tacitus married the daughter of Gnaeus Julius Agricola. At the same time began to develop actively and his career. In his notes Tacitus admitted that the rapid success contributed to the three emperors: Domitian, Titus and Vespasian. In the political language, this means that he was included in the lists of the prefect, quaestor and senate. Usually the magistrates from the quaestor or the tribune got into the last one. Tacit was included in the list ahead of schedule. This indicated a special confidence of the emperor. So Tacitus was on the list of "candidates Caesar" - people who were recommended to receive a position and approved by the senate, regardless of ability and merit.

Consulate

In 96, Domitian was overthrown. Instead, Nerva became the emperor. It is not entirely clear from sources which of them formed and approved the lists of the consulate. Presumably, the compiler was Domitian. Nerva had already made the final statement. One way or another, in 97, Cornelius Tacitus became the consul-deuce. For him, it was the height of his fairly successful career. During the period of the consuls, Tacitus witnessed and directly participated in attempts to suppress the mutiny of the Praetorians. Around the year 100, with Pliny the Younger, he dealt with the case of African provincials who opposed Maria Prisca, a consul known for abuse.

last years of life

From the sources found in the Milias at the end of the 19th century, it is known about the proconsulence of Cornelius Tacitus in Asia in 112-113. His title and name were recorded in the inscription. The province had a special significance for Rome. The emperors sent only proven people to it. In this case, the appointment of Cornelia Tacitus was particularly responsible. The importance was associated with the planned campaign of Trajan to Parthia. Throughout his life Tacitus was friendly with Pliny the Younger. The latter was considered the most famous Roman intellectual of the end of the 1st century. Unfortunately, the exact date of death of Tacitus is unknown. Based on his desire to document the reign of Trajan, Nerva and Octavian Augustus, but not realized, the researchers conclude that he died some time after the publication of the Annals. But there are no mention of Tacitus in Suetonius either. This may indicate death in the area of 120 years or even later.

Literature Rome

By the end of the first century, the empire had written a lot of works, which illustrated its development. They were attended by evidence of the founding of Rome, the past provinces, a significant part of which was once an independent state. There were also detailed works on wars. At that time, history was equated with a variety of oratory. It was due to the fact that in Greece and Rome of the ancient period, any works were, as a rule, read out and, accordingly, were perceived by people by ear. The history was considered honorable. Several works were from the Emperor Claudius. Tacitus' contemporaries left their autobiographical works. Among them were Adrian and Vespasian. Trajan witnessed the events of the Dacian campaign.

Problems of antiquity

However, speaking in general, historiography during Tacitus was in decline. First of all, it was the fault of the principality. Because of him, historians divided into two categories. The first supported the empire. They tried not to record events that occurred in the last decades. The authors usually confined themselves to describing individual episodes, very recent phenomena, and glorifying the emperor in power. At the same time, they adhered to official versions of what was happening. In another category was the opposition. Accordingly, they carried completely opposite ideas in their writings. This greatly alarmed the authorities. The authors who described modern events had difficulty in finding sources. The fact is that many of the eyewitnesses kept a strict silence, were killed or expelled from the empire. All documents confirming conspiracies, coups, intrigues, were at the court of the ruler. Access there was very limited range of people. Few of them dared to reveal secrets. And if there were such people, they asked for a high price for information.

Censorship

In addition, the ruling elite began to understand that the authors, fixing past events, invariably draw parallels with modern realities. Accordingly, they expressed their own opinion about what was happening. In this regard, the imperial court imposed censorship. This was well informed and Tacitus, who described the tragic events associated with Cremucia Cord. The latter committed suicide, and all his writings were devoted to fire. Everything that Cornelius Tacitus wrote testifies to the massacres of opposition thinkers of our time. For example, in his writings he mentions Gerennia Senecio and Arulena Rustic, who were executed. In his "Dialogue on the speaker," the author voiced the opinion prevalent at that time that publications that the ruling government could interpret as an attack against it were undesirable. Potential writers began active pressure for their desire to uncover the secrets of court life and the activities of the Senate. For example, Pliny the Younger testifies that Tacitus, who read out his work, was interrupted by the friends of "one man." They begged not to continue, because they believed that information that could adversely affect the reputation of their acquaintance could be disclosed. The writing of stories was accompanied, therefore, by various difficulties. That is why relatively neutral works by the end of the 1 st century did not appear. For the writing of such works, Tacitus took it.

Review essays

? What did Cornelius Tacitus write ? Presumably, the idea of creating an essay on the near past came to him after some time after the death of Domitian. Nevertheless, Tacitus began with small works. First he created a biography of Agricola (his father-in-law). In it, among other things, Tacitus collected a lot of ethnographic and geographical details about the life of British nationalities. In the introduction to the composition, he gives a description of the period of Domitian's reign. In particular, Tacitus speaks of him as a time that was taken away by the emperor from the Romans. In the same preface, the intention is to set out a comprehensive work. Subsequently, in a separate work "Germany" Tacitus describes the northern neighbors of the empire. It is worth noting that these first two works echo the general idea of his later works. Having finished "Agricola" and "Germany", Tacitus began a large-scale work on the events of the years 68-96. In the process of its creation, he published a "Dialogue on speakers." At the end of his life, Tacitus began the creation of the Annals. In them he wanted to present the events of 14-68 years.

Conclusion

Cornelius Tacitus had the brightest writer's talent. In his writings, he did not use cliched clichés. Honoring skill with every new work, Tacitus became the greatest chronicler of his time. This is largely due to the fact that he conducted a thorough analysis of the sources he used. Moreover, in his writings he sought to uncover the psychology of the actors. The works of Tacitus in modern times have gained immense popularity in European countries. Despite the imposed censorship and pressure, he was able to create the greatest works. The works of Tacitus had a great influence on the development of political thought in European countries.