Analysis Of The Res Gestae: The Deeds Of The Divine Augustus

The Res Gestae or The Deeds of the Divine Augustus is an account of the life of the first Roman Emperor, Caesar Augustus. The biography, which is preserved on two bronze pillars in the city of Rome, was commissioned by the emperor on the seventy-third year of his reign . The autobiography stands as the ‘official’ record of Augustus’s legacy. The format is fragmented, as each deed is recorded separately, while the structure is linear as the events chronicled are arranged in chronological order. I consider that the Res Gestae to be a fairly unique autobiography; it is completely partisan, making no attempt whatsoever to analyze events fairly. It omits negative events in Augustus’s life, and documents only the public life of the emperor. Because of these features I contend that the Res Gestae is a propaganda piece, rather than an autobiography. Most autobiographies do not include
These are overwhelmingly the more controversial elements of the emperor’s life; The Imperial Household and The Proscriptions. The emperor’s private life was deeply controversial in Rome at the time, he married his second wife Livia, while she was already pregnant with another man’s child, and his daughter Julia’s salacious behavior was a source of embarrassment for Augustus . So poor was her reputation that Augustus had her banished to the island of Pandateria. These familial circumstances, hardly worthy of a “divine” individual are completely ignored in the Res Gestae. Also absent, is any reference to the Proscriptions, state-sanctioned murders approved by Augustus as Triumvir . Octavian prefers to ignore the fact that much of his wealth and power came from the murder of his fellow citizens. By ignoring the more controversial sides of the emperor’s life, the author deliberately leaves the reader with an incomplete and false image of Octavian. He is shown to be perfect. This is of course deliberate, as Augustus is