I, Claudius

From Free net encyclopedia

Image:I claudius cover.JPG

I, Claudius is a novel by Robert Graves, (ISBN 067972477X) first published in 1934, dealing sympathetically with the life of the Roman Emperor Claudius and the history of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty and Roman Empire, from Julius Caesar's assassination in 44 BC to Caligula's assassination in 41 AD. Graves's interpretation of the story owes much to the biographies of Tacitus, Plutarch, and (most especially) Suetonius. Graves continued his tale (from Claudius' accession after Caligula's death to his death in 54 AD, as well as a segue involving the early life of Herod Agrippa) in Claudius the God (1935).

Contents

[edit]

Content

The message of the story appears to concern the relationship between liberty (as demonstrated by the Roman Republic, and the dedication to its ideals shown by Augustus and young Claudius) and stability (as demonstrated by Empress Livia, Herod Agrippa, and the elder Claudius). The Republic provided for freedom, but was inherently unstable and threw the doors open for endless civil wars, of which the last was ended by Augustus after twenty years of fighting. While Augustus harbors Republican sentiments, his wife Livia manages to convince him that to lay down his Imperial powers would be to destroy the peaceful society they have made. Likewise, when the similarly-minded Claudius becomes emperor, he is convinced by Empress Messalina and Herod to preserve his powers, for much the same reason. However, Graves acknowledges that there must be a delicate balance between Republican liberty and Imperial stability; whereas too much of the former led to civil war, too much of the latter led to the corruption of Tiberius, Caligula, Messalina, Sejanus, Herod Agrippa, Nero, Agrippinilla, and countless others - as well as, to a lesser extent, Livia and Claudius himself.

Near the end of Claudius the God, Graves introduces another idea: that when a formerly-free nation has lived under a dictatorship for too long, it is incapable of returning to free rule. This is highlighted by Claudius' failed attempts to revive the Republic; by the attempts of various characters to 'restore' the Republic but with themselves as the true rulers; and by Claudius noting that 'by dulling the blade of tyranny, I reconciled Rome to the monarchy' - i.e., in his attempts to rule autocratically but along more Republican lines, he has only made the Roman people more complacent about their dictatorship.

There also seems to be a subtle feminist message, in line with other works of Graves's: Julia, Livia, Drusilla, Messalina, and Agripinilla are quite obviously the powers behind their husbands, fathers, brothers, and/or sons; a good example being: whereas Augustus would have inadvertently caused civil war, Livia managed, via quiet manipulation, to preserve the peace.

Despite being an extremely well translated and composed work, its extremely sympathetic nature must be noted - this was, after all, based on Claudius's own works, and so very subjective in its portrayal of the 'plight' of Claudius.

[edit]

Adaptations for film and television

The book was to have been adapted into a 1937 film, produced by Alexander Korda and starring Charles Laughton, but it was dogged by ill-luck, culminating in a serious accident involving the female star, Merle Oberon, which caused filming to be abandoned. Some rushes still exist; the BBC featured them in a programme about Claudius that is included in the I, Claudius DVD Box Set. The documentary is 70 minutes long and includes about 25 minutes of original footage from the cancelled film.

In 1976, the book, together with its sequel, was adapted for television by the BBC, and proved one of the corporation's most successful drama serials of all time.

Image:Claudius.jpg

The major cast included:

Wilfrid Josephs provided the suitably eerie title music. Among other awards, the series won 3 BAFTAs in 1977 (Derek Jacobi, Best Actor (TV); Siân Phillips, Best Actress (TV); Tim Harvey, Best Design (TV)).

Production of the series was delayed because of complex negotiations between the BBC and the copyright holders of the aborted film version. This did however give the scriptwriter Jack Pulman, who would die in 1979, more time to fine-tune his script.

The series was subsequently broadcast in the United States as part of PBS' s Masterpiece Theatre series, where it was widely acclaimed. It has come to be widely regarded as one of the best television series ever made. In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, I, Claudius was placed 12th.

Most VHS and DVD versions of the TV series include a BBC documentary on the Korda film project called The Epic That Never Was, featuring interviews with key production staff and actors as well as most of the surviving footage. The 2002 UK DVD edition also contains a documentary on the series, I, Claudius - a Television Epic, as well as some alternate and deleted scenes.

The Canadian independent film I, Claudia was inspired in title by this book. Another title punning I, Claudius is the book I & Claudius: Travels with My Cat by Clare de Vries about the author's drive across America with her old Burmese cat. Sesame Street's Monsterpiece Theatre also has aired a parody of the play (Me, Claudius). When the re-cut version of the infamous Caligula was released in Italy, it was re-titled Io, Caligola, in order to capitalize on the acclaim of Graves' work.

[edit]

Quote

  • "...as for being "half-witted", what can I say... except that I have survived to middle age, with half my wits, while thousands have died with all of their wits intact!" -- Derek Jacobi, as Claudius I upon being installed (against his will) by the Roman military.
[edit]

See also

[edit]

External links

sv:Jag, Claudius

Retrieved from "http://www.netipedia.com/index.php/I%2C_Claudius"