Book review: "The Cicero trilogy", by Robert Harris

Synopsis: Beginning at the start of Cicero's public life (in the middle of the first century B.C.), the trilogy takes you through the rise, fall and eventual death of Cicero through the eyes of his loyal secretary Tiro, during one of the most famous and tumultuous times of the Roman republic. Cicero, an upstanding and moral lawyer from humble beginnings, climbs the corrupt and power hungry ladder of the Roman republic, and constructs an admirable career as a Roman statesman while largely managing to keep his moral code intact. A firm believer in democracy and the power of the people's right to elect, he sacrifices much in order to have moral superiority. Living in the political world of historical greats, such as Julius Caesar, Pompey the Great and the Emperor Augustus could not have been (and apparently wasn't!) a walk in the park, and as Cicero's' life has demonstrated, the Roman empire was a far from peaceful place. Essentially, whoever had the most money, the least morals (and biggest private army) ruled the roost... for the time-being. Trapped between trying to uphold the ideals of the republic, ensuring that a publicly elected senate firmly holds the reigns of power, and sometimes merely trying to survive to see another day, Cicero's colorful life is a clear testament that neither joy nor sorrow last forever (as he himself said, "Nothing dries quicker than a tear"). Finally, as the greatest empire in the world slowly starts to collapse around him, he begins to realize that not only was he a cornerstone on which the might of the empire was built, but that he also had a hand to play in it's imminent demise...

Review: As an overview of Cicero's life, it certainly hits all the keys points (with impressive accuracy, throughout). Reading the Wikipedia page of "Cicero" is like reading the greatest overall summary of this trilogy.

Considering that it covers over 30 years of his political life, Harris can be excused for moving forward "a little TOO fast", at times. But, with the notion that it is a source of entertainment, and not a historical essay, this can be forgiven (I think, in fact, that it would lose some of it's appeal if it were any longer). Harris does well to advise the reader at the beginning that, when faced with the historical fact and the literary preference, he always tried to find a suitable compromise... but when necessary, chose the latter over the former.

A criticism could be that, in spanning a whole 30 years of Cicero's incredibly active and engaging public life, it does get repetitive at times, to the point where, if you're not concentrating, you can easily lose track of who's friends with who / who's stabbed someone else in the back (largely figuratively!) / who's shagging who... and you'll have to go back a few pages to catch up. One thing we can take away from it is that it was certainly a sordid world that the Roman's lived in- bribery, corruption, betrayal, incest, affairs, murder... these are all daily themes in the life of a political elite in the era of Cicero (How they ever got any roads built is beyond me)!

On separate charges, this book could be pulled up for crimes against realistic Roman dialogues- at times, it feels like you're reading a movie script. An example:

"So you can save your breath as far as that's concerned and tell me instead what's become of Milo's bankrupt estate. You remember the sale was fixed so you got it all for next to nothing, and then you were supposed to sell it at a profit and give the proceeds to Fausta?"

You see? No Hollywood director in their right mind could convince themselves that they were producing an authentic Roman replication of the Latin way of thinking, talking and phrasing when faced with such dialogue. If one takes the fact that the speech so obviously doesn't try to follow a Latin way of thinking too seriously, then this book runs the risk of losing it's authentic feel.


However, I wouldn't condemn Harris too quickly. There are certain books, such as Les Miserables, which greatly benefit from the antiquated language to give the reader the genuine feeling that they're stepping back in time (in the case of Les Mis, into the grubby streets of post-Napoleonic Paris). However, this trilogy doesn't feel like it's lacking in authenticity, as it makes up for it's 21st century speech rhythms in so many other areas (such as the obvious accounts for all the dates and facts, as well as the characters). In the end, you just brush the contemporary dialogues off as a minor point. It certainly doesn't hinder the pleasure in reading, and without a doubt makes the characters more accessible to a 21st century audience. 

In conclusion, Cicero is truly brought to life through these books- you get a real feeling of the man, like you know him personally. You accept him, despite his imperfections (a fickle allegiance policy being the main one), and because of his many virtues (him being courageous, headstrong, decisive, and with a far stronger moral compass than those surrounding him), and one cannot feel that they are saying goodbye to a great man, and a well-loved friend as they close the final book. In all sincerity, having known nothing of Cicero before reading this trilogy, I feel like I've not only been absolutely entertained, but also that I can take away with me some well treasured knowledge about this prominent historical figure.

Score: 8/10