It is as a historian that Sallust’s reputation has survived and his works ‘Bellum
Catiline’ (the war of Catilinae) and ‘Bellum Iugurthinum’ (the Jugurthinian war)
have survived in their entirety with fragments of his larger ‘historiae’ (histories)
also remaining intact. Stylistically he marked a direct contrast to the work of his
rival Cicero as he intentionally
used a variety of archaic words and
unusual forms as opposed to
conversational Latin. His main
inspiration was the Greek historian
Thucydides and his writing was
similar to that of the Athenian in
terms of his stylistic brevity and
his impartiality. The main aspect
of his histories that was unusual
was the format as he wrote in
monographs instead of the
traditional
linear
histories,
allowing him to explore large
themes through close and detailed
The Bellum Iugurthinum
examination of smaller events.
Sallust’s historical work was based on politics and political morality. In ‘Bellum
Catilinae’ (42-43BC) he explored the roots of corruption in Roman politics
through the example of the patrician Catiline who had attempted to elevate
himself into a position of power in 63BC using the support of those in the upper
classes who would benefit financially or politically from his command. This is
presented as a great disaster for the Roman Republic and Sallust indicates that
Caesar and the politician and poet Cato the Elder were responsible for the victory
9
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker