Chapter 9 - How Roman Are the Antiquities? The Decemvirate according to Dionysius

Summary

Dionysius’ work has been understood as being both ‘thoroughly Greek’ and ‘very Roman’. Scholars usually approach this apparent contradiction by (1) examining Dionysius as a Greek under Roman rule and (2) considering Augustan echoes in the Roman Antiquities. This chapter proposes a new way: could Dionysius’ presentation of senatorial debate be influenced by the way political life operated in the late first century, beyond Augustus? Dionysius’ experience of living in Rome will have coloured his interpretation of politics more than simply in terms of Augustanism. The story of the decemvirate provides fruitful terrain for this study. It is thematically important, occupying a central position in the Antiquities, and, claims Dionysius, Roman law surpassed Greek law at this point. Second, it illustrates how Dionysius combines Roman political thought with Greek literary heritage. We must therefore understand Dionysius not only as the product of his literary influences, but also his daily life.