A long way from Rome

Although Latin, Greek and the ancient world in general are no longer central to modern education, Julius Caesar still remains a household name. During his intensely dramatic life he was a politician, general, rebel and dictator, and still found the time to be an author and serial adulterer. Controversy surrounded him in his lifetime and has never really let up. Was he the man who destroyed the Roman Republic or the visionary who saw the need for reform? Maria Wyke’s highly enjoyable new book does not try to answer such questions. It is not so much about Caesar the man as all the many versions of him in poetry, literature, opera and drama, sometimes of politics, and more recently of cinema, television and even advertising. Hence Shaw and Shakespeare rub shoulders with Asterix, the television series Xena: Warrior Princess and Caesars Palace casino in Las Vegas.

Even knowing the huge influence on western culture of the classical world, the sheer ubiquity of Caesar down the centuries is astounding. As a result Wyke starts by saying that she will not cover everything, but instead selects particular episodes of his life and discusses some of the ways he has been treated. Thus the affair with Cleopatra represents his many sexual escapades.

A distinguished scholar, Wyke demonstrates her thorough knowledge of the subject, but this is no dry, academic study. Instead it is a lively and thought-provoking read which skips lightly across the centuries. There is also a sense of proportion, so that the author never loses sight of the relative artistic merits and depth of the various works discussed. The suggestion that Asterix symbolises the ‘little man … embroiled in a nostalgic struggle against modernity’ gets a mention, but is not dignified by serious consideration.