"I, Claudius" by Robert Graves –          

Robert Graves has achieved a true masterpiece with these "fake" memoirs of Emperor Tiberius Claudius. The first lines set the tone: “I Tiberius Claudius […] this that and the other who was once and not so long ago either, known to my friends and relatives and associates as Claudius the Idiot, or That Claudius or Claudius the Stammerer or Clau-Clau-Claudius or at best poor Uncle Claudius am now about to write this strange history of my life….” Graves’ achievement’s lies in the precise description of the Roman times, the depth of the characters in their struggle to gain power or save their lives and in transferring to his lead character the tragic intensity of a Greek tragedy. From the first to the last line the reader is immerged in the time of Claudius and in the struggles of his life.

"Claudius the God" by Robert Graves – 

This is the second volume of the novel of Robert Graves about Roman Emperor Claudius. Like in the first installment, the author writes as if it was the emperor himself writing his own memoirs. Again the style and the writing is very convincing in making the reader believe that he is indeed reading the thoughts of Claudius and as a result, the book works very well in giving an in depth glimpse of first century Rome. My favorite part was without a doubt the first section about Herod Agrippa, Claudius’ architectural achievements and the conquest of Britain.

Then, as the story unfolds further, the reader becomes less and less at ease with the compromises, the naïveté and the acts of cruelty of the hero who presented himself in the first book as a defenseless, friendly and more importantly idealistic republican at heart. In this context the acts of the emperor are more difficult to justify and the idea that the emperor would discuss these honestly in his memoirs seems far- fetched.

This feeling of uneasiness grows throughout the book as the emperor’s behavior becomes more and more out of touch with reality and justice. The reader feels that the author himself becomes increasingly challenged to find excuses for his hero or at least to express the true reasons of his behavior.

The last section of the book, from the discovery of Messalina’s infidelities to the description of the emperor’s reign with his fourth wife Agrippina the younger and the rise of Nero is frankly quite painful to follow. The behavior of Claudius becomes completely enigmatic and the concept of a self-reflecting memoir becomes then completely unbelievable.

Nevertheless the full saga remains an outstanding work of history and literature that I would recommend to anyone interested in history, the Roman period and the tragedy of the early Roman Emperors.