[Disclaimer: For those of you that know me well enough, I've got a boner for the classical period in general and Rome in particular. While I think that this blog is going to have something to say to folks who aren't as enamored with our Latin-speaking western predecessors - why else would I write it - readers should bear in mind that what follows is basically me geeking out. Indulge me.]
"Whether posterity will give us a thought I don't know" wrote Pliny to Tacitus, "but surely we deserve one..."
Modest, no; but true enough. Out of all the ancient authors, whose works are still extant, I love Pliny the Younger best.
Reading ancient authors is especially difficult. Apart from all the reasons you can guess, what's frustrating is what information We and They find worthy of historical note is seldom the same. Reading Tacitus's histories of the first five (Julio-Claudian) emperors, I was struck by the all-too-perfect irony when he had to break from his narration to basically explain "Look, I know you must be bored to tears reading about all this conniving, bloodletting, bizarre executions and utterly debauched sex, God knows I don't enjoy it, but lets just get through this part so I can get back to the manifest of the legions of Northern Germany, and how they secured the precious winter's corn supply." I guess poor Tacitus would be shocked and appalled if he knew that I skimmed past every description of grain shipments to get the the parts about gratuitous sex and violence. But those kinds of details (descriptions of skirmishes, who was Consul for the year, etc) are apparently what they thought important.
Not so with Pliny. All that survives of him are his personal letters. Some addressed to his wife or relatives; Some to friends like Tacitus; Some to the Emperor Trajan (and responses!) during his service as magistrate in Asia Minor. Through this vast collection of correspondence, Pliny paints a vivid image for us - perhaps inadvertently - of day-to-day life in his age. He describes what morality meant before Christianity co opted it. He shows us love of Country, love of Mankind and love of Justice. He talks about superstitions and good etiquette.
Why is this relevant? Apart from historical curiosity, Pliny shares a common connection with us. He was not born during the founding of Rome. Nor was he born during the beginning of the Empire. He, and others of his age, inherited an empire, as we do now. Pliny's empire was past it's golden age, but still in the midst of a "silver age" of maintained supremacy, but edging closer to decline. There were no great battles left to fight. No room for new victories. The ethic had shifted from pursuit of conquest to avoidance of disaster. Like Pliny, we see our glorious forefathers (the founders, and the "greatest generation") as beyond comparison to ourselves (excluding the Baby Boomers, of course). We feel unequal to the task of making them proud, but determined not to cause them shame. We feel that we've inherited greatness, and we're paranoid that we might screw it up. He is a kindred spirit to us, "Generation Y", who have inherited a Cold War dinosaur, a mountain of debt and must find a way to forge ahead.
Yet, Pliny's time is considered by modern historians to be a high point for the empire. The longest and most consistent period of good governance and relative peace. And although his name is not so well remembered as Caesar, Cicero and Nero, Pliny is remembered for being a responsible public servant, who was attentive to duty and fundamentally decent. This gives me hope. We who work shitty day jobs; we who spend our free time learning good politics and good faith; we who happily pay into social security knowing full well they we will probably never withdraw benefits; we who are looked down upon by elders who themselves refuse to make sacrifices - we will someday be redeemed. We will earn a modest place in history, through decency and responsibility. Will posterity give us a thought? I don't know. But surely we deserve one.
It is interesting to note the different priorities of historians throughout the ages. Take Edward Gibbon, the author of "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire," for example. In general, he is fairly non-descriptive of the crimes and debaucheries of the emperors. A modern historian, on the other hand, might go into as much detail as possible.
ReplyDeleteOn a different note, I would like to say this:
We are witnessing the twilight of, not just the decline of the United States, but the decline of the entire Western world. Both China and India are respectively set to surpass and match the US economy in as little as nine to twenty years. Inevitably, this means the United States will suffer a regression in its political and military influence.
So, is it really fair to say we are living in a Silver Age? Regardless, we are about to take another drop on the metal scale.
That was a nice read. I would just add that I think the "burden" of this generation was supposed to belong to our parents.
ReplyDeleteThey didn't feel try "not to cause (their parents) shame" and instead lived as they pleased. Our generation then is forced to attempt to maintain something that spent 40 years or so in disrepair.
Otherwise I agree and enjoyed reading that.
Matt, I don't share your apocalyptic vision of America's future. It's probably true that we're headed for a recession, in the sense that our power relative to other nations will recede. However, I don't believe that economics is a zero-sum equation. Just because China and India are expanding, it does not necessarily mean that the West must therefore decline by an equal amount. Trade is inherently good, the more the better. America's economy has steadily grown (albeit at a slower rate than other nations, but still) even during recessions. If we can get our own spending resolved (god, please), it's entirely possible that we can continue to enjoy comfortable standards of living, despite no longer being #1 in the world.
ReplyDeleteMy comparison to Pliny's age and place is less than perfect. However, we're both a part of worlds that have already "won their glory", and we're left the decidedly inglorious task of trying to administer it, or at least salvage what we can.
The overall idea I was trying to get across is that even bad or mediocre times are capable of producing Great Men, and it may be true that it's even nobler to take it upon yourself to do well in such a time, when your deeds hold no guarantee of being remembered, no promise of fame.
John, I feel the same way. It just seemed out of scope for this blog to write an extended dig at the Baby Boomers (they do deserve an EXTENDED dig)...
ReplyDeleteNow that our generation is beginning to come into it's own, I've read on more than one occasion articles written by Boomers who have accused our generation of being "too frugal". Whether that charge is true or false, I don't care. The last people in the world fit to make that critique are the Baby Boomers. It's not right to make such a sweeping generalization but I can't help it. Those people have, for the most part, lived outside of their means for so long. For all the ideology of the 60's, they have turned out the be not only the most selfish, but most commercial and empty of recent generations.
I for one am looking forward to HAVING the problem of being "too thrify." It will be a refreshing change of pace, at least.
"Apocalyptic" is far too strong of a word. I didn't mean to say the changes would be instant and horrific for us. I just mean that we are reaching the dawn of an era in which the East will develop a far greater amount of political, military, and cultural influence on the world stage. Naturally, this means it's not going to be all about us (the United States and the West in general) anymore.
ReplyDeleteFrom the perspective of a future historian, I'd imagine this to be a rather important era in the decline of the United States, but only time will truly tell.
Hmmmmm
ReplyDeleteI agree with much of your sentiment there Matt but I don't think this time will be of terrible importance on our of history.
ReplyDeleteNo doubt it's a twilight, but what is happening here is neither the cause of our decline nor the death rattle. It's the space between.
World historians will likely look back on this period more on the growth in China and democratic awakenings in the middle east.