I, Claudius - An Analysis of Nero

I think it was a conversation in the hat that made me start this. Personally, I think I, Claudius is the best TV series ever and we still watch it, and love it.

Based on the novel by Robert Graves, who called it a "pot boiler", adapted for TV by Jack Pullman, directed by Herbert Wise and produced by Joan Sullivan and Martin Lisemore.

What's there not to like about it? The humour, the actors, the dialogue. It's also interesting if you analyse it on a cultural level, like who is sitting where at the dinner table as well as looking at the historical context of the events, as well as the not-so-historical parts.

Eventually I'll do an episode-by-episode analysis, similar to my Poirot thread but not nearly as long.

List of episodes

And some very kind person has put them all up on youtube, so I'll link them here so you can watch.

But now, let's just have some initial impressions. I was introduced to this when I studied the period in the first year of my BA, and as I watched it somehow gained a curious audience who would see it with me.

Favourite character: Livia, it's fascinating to watch her and Sian is BRILLIANT

Favourite episode: a toss up between "Waiting in the Wings", which has Julia's banishment and "What Shall We Do About Claudius", which has the disaster of the Rhine, the gladiatorial games and Postumus banishment.

As for a favourite line, there are far, far too many of them.

 

I love I,Claudius.

I wrote this about it in the miniseries thread:

One of the greatest miniseries ever made, I have seen this several times from beginning to end, and it is powerful stuff, full of schemes, betrayals, murder, and politics. The strength of the series lies in two places: the script, and the performances. There was no budget for action sequences or location shooting, but the series proved that you do not need these things to give exciting TV. I don?t think there is any background music, and again, it doesn?t need it. When you have a script this good, and actors of this calibre, you really don?t need anything else.

 

The closest would probably be the music that plays in the title sequence, which is repeated sometimes like in the episode when Drusilla dies.

And there are quite a few musicians, like in the very first episode with the half-naked African dancers.

 

From the credits--atonal buzz-saw music over a poisonous snake undulating over a mosaic--to the end, this is one brilliant mini-series. Great cast, which includes Derek Jacobi (as Claudius), Patrick Stewart (with hair!) (as Sejanus), John Rhys-Davies (as Macro), John Hurt (as Caligula), Brian Blessed (as Augustus) and--decorating one of the best roles in literature--Sian Phillips as Livia. She files her canines down to points and leaps for the jugular. You watch her and think--why I haven't seen this actress before, and why isn't she a Great Big Star?

Good point about the audience being riveted by the characters and not really noticing the bargain basement physical production. They did not stint on the writing or acting, that's all I can say.

I read the book when I was pretty young (it was recommended by one of my older brothers, of all things), and I've seen snippets of the plot in some very strange places (most notably, an extremely accurate version of the ascension of Claudius to Emperor in a "Sons of Hercules" movie). Pullman doesn't always stick to the book, but when he doesn't, it isn't jarring.

The second book is a bit padded with the story of Herod Agrippa, which is interesting but not fascinating.

The main historical difference is probably the view of Augustus, who is seen as a bit of a doofus, under the sway of his second wife, Livia. The historical Augustus was a much tougher customer.

 

But then again, Graves was going from Suetonius, among other things.

 

From Wiki:

"However, Graves was selective in his use of the ancient sources (primarily Tacitus and Suetonius), not always following their assessments. For example, the worst allegations against Tiberius and Caligula are repeated as fact, while similar allegations against Augustus focus on Livia's influence. Livia is made to confess to murders (of Marcellus, Agrippa, Augustus, Gaius, and Lucius) that she is alleged to have performed in only a single ancient source (Tacitus). Augustus, meanwhile, is depicted as a kindly man, even something of an amiable buffoon and dupe, who is sadly misled by his megalomaniacal wife.

A common charge of the ancient historians against Claudius is that he was easily ruled by his wives and freedmen. Graves rejected this assertion when it came to Claudius's major works and good deeds ? as do modern historians. However, he does accept this explanation as an excuse for the less acceptable or understandable actions of the historical Claudius. Most of the capricious executions and blunders that marred his reign are blamed on the scheming of Messalina, Agrippinilla, Narcissus, and Pallas. Graves pushes this interpretation to the point where nearly all those tried or executed seem to be innocent of any crime or undeserving of a harsh sentence. This is clearly at odds with the record. The historical Claudius was the subject of more assassination attempts than any previous emperor, perhaps because Caligula's death revealed that an emperor could indeed be killed and replaced. Undoubtedly, some of those condemned for treason were guilty.

The adoption of his stepson Nero is a case in which Graves absolves Claudius of various accusations. Graves has Claudius give in to every one of his wife Agrippinilla's demands, in a supposed bid to show Rome the face of real tyranny. The obvious problems of adopting an heir to supersede his own son Britannicus are not explored, until a strange plot is revealed at the end. In reality, the motivation for the adoption of an older teenager was most likely political. It was probably done in order to preserve Claudius's rule by demonstrating that a mature heir was available (so no usurper could grab power). This tactic was effective in that the number of assassination attempts on Claudius dropped off precipitously afterwards. Nero was a minor at the time, popular with the public, and unconnected with any scandal or plot - there was no indication of his future behavior as Emperor. As Britannicus approached manhood in 54, the historical Claudius did make preparations to name him the heir apparent (or co-heir), right on schedule.

The last major case of Graves's tendency to follow sources selectively occurs when Claudius's accession is instigated by Herod Agrippa. This is based on an account by Josephus, in which the role of Agrippa is played up in order to demonstrate how Jews had helped Rome. This account fits with Graves's portrayal of Claudius as a republican, as it explains how Claudius could have come unwillingly to power. However, this interpretation is inaccurate in the view of both modern historians and the rest of the ancient sources (including another account by Josephus). Nearly everyone in Rome sensed the plot against Caligula, and the historical Claudius was no exception, though he did not have a direct hand in it. After Caligula's murder, Claudius was faced with a choice between becoming Emperor or being killed. He naturally chose the former. There is no indication of republican hesitancy on his part in the record, aside from Josephus's claim.

Modern historians suggest that if Claudius is to be credited with all the accomplishments of his reign, he should also be held responsible for the mistakes as well, whether these were the result of justified cautiousness, mistaken reasoning, failure to foresee future effects, paranoia, or even too much faith in his advisers.

Graves ignored or accepted historical fact as it fitted the chosen narrative. There is no historical evidence of the withdrawn, fatalistic Claudius at the end of Claudius the God ? a Claudius compl

 

Well, neither Graves nor Pullman let the truth get in the way of a good story.

There are discrepencies between the book and the TV series, and a lot of them surround Herod Agrippa. Herod was actually in Rome at the time of Tiberius's death, and in prison due to Caligula's scheming. I actually found Herod's adventures to be one of the most amusing parts of the books, though I can see why so much of him was left out, he simply takes over the story with the way he gets around. Claudius says the same at the start of the second novel, and the account of his death is in both Josephus and the Acts of the Apostles.

The TV series also confuses Gaius and Lucius, but I forget exactly how.

This is a very good website about the series, check it out.

 

Hah, I was going to send you that link. You're way ahead of me.

"This episode is very dependent upon the book, I, Claudius which closely adheres to the ancient sources. Pulman, following Graves' lead, does include 'invented' incidents but these are fairly inconsequential historically and serve to develop the plot.

The Sibyline prophecy and the riot are both found in Graves' novel, but here we find him playing games with his sources. Yes, the Romans consulted the Sibyline Books, but no ancient source provides this foretelling of Graves' I, Claudius. Graves and Pulman use this oracle as a clever conceit to frame the narrative. Evidence for a riot during Augustus' tour of the eastern provinces can be found in Dio. Consular elections are the cause, however, not the death of Marcellus. Because of the riots, Augustus through an intermediary-Maecenas, makes overtures to Agrippa. Nowhere in Dio's account of the rioting does Livia address the mob. So Graves, it appears, couldn't help himself. He inserts Livia into this historic event so she can be pelted with crap. Her humiliation then becomes the catalyst for Agrippa's recall. This incident also serves to illustrate a running theme in the novel and television series, "if Augustus ruled the world, Livia ruled Augustus."

One quibble with this episode is the omission of a full explanation of the rivalry between Agrippa and Marcellus. The audience is left to assume that Agrippa never really stood a chance against the precocious Marcellus. According to Dio, when Augustus fell deathly ill and was forced to name a successor, he chose Agrippa. Augustus, of course, was eventually cured by the help of Musa and his ever-doting and dedicated wife Livia. While Pulman has Livia mention Augustus' illness as part of her nursing credentials, he does not include the naming of Agrippa. In the episode, Augustus completely discounts Agrippa as his successor because of his age and birth.

Another minor point of criticism is with the sculptural adornment of Augustus' peristyle. For the most part, Herbert Wise and his designer Tim Harvey do an excellent job recreating the realia of Augustan Rome. The opening banquet scene correctly places Agrippa in the 'seat' of honor, Augustus reclines in the host's spot. The costumes, hair style and the furnishings are very much to period. So, what are busts of Hadrian(AD117-138) and Septimius Severus (AD193-211) doing in a first century BC garden? Time Warp."



One of the worst curses of historical adaptations--exposition--is very cleverly handled, but as noted, some things are left out, most notably Livia and Augustus' history.

 

Nowhere in Dio's account of the rioting does Livia address the mob. So Graves, it appears, couldn't help himself. He inserts Livia into this historic event so she can be pelted with crap.

That scene is so funny! As is the scene when she returns to the house and rebuffs all those slaves fawning over her!

And Zaz, we're just talking about the series in general right now, on to individual episodes tomorrow or the next day maybe and I'll ask you to change the title (which you could do right now on my Poirot thread )

Here's the start though of the first episode

And here is a character quiz and a drinking game

 

I'm looking forward to the first episode, then.

 

I read the first book in the 90's, thought it was okay (I read it on a train, over the course of a month, I think - not the best way to read it), then saw the TV version. The miniseries really brought it to life, and it has slowly become one of my favourite TV adaptations. The quality of the cast is mindboggling. I can't think of a series with a more powerhouse cast, although I suppose that many of the actors were not so well known when they starred in I, Claudius.

 

Yes, the cast is great, even to the most obscure roles.

 

One thing that the TV adaptation does VERY well is that it shows present events, with the older Claudius, as well as the flashbacks of past ones. The plot to some extent keeps moving in the present and we aren't wholly confined to flashbacks.

A Touch of Murder

Characters

Claudius, Augustus, Livia, Julia, Tiberius, Marcellus, Marcus Agrippa, Musa, Octavia, Vispania

The first thing that you are going to see is a very cool tile mosaic with even cooler music playing in the background, and a snake. Don't be fooled and worry that this introduction is the climax of the episode or that there couldn't possibly exist anything better than the intro. There are thirteen episodes waiting to prove that assumption wrong. Episode One is just the beginning....

The episode begins with Claudius as an old guy, sitting in his study writing his autobiography. He has a flashback to his encounter with the Sibyl who recognizes him because of his stammer, although he is attempting to be anonymous. The Sibyl relates to Claudius a long prophesy, but the gist of it is that Claudius' voice will be heard clearly in about 1900 years, which is of course the publication date of the book on which this series is based. I,Claudius is the autobiography that Claudius hid away.

The next scene is everybody's favorite because of BareNaked ladies. Yes, they are in this episode and dance around naked, shaking stuff, for the delight of all attending the dinner party which is being held in honor of the seventh anniversary of the Battle of Actium (31 BC). Augustus has had a neato cake made and can't wait for it to be brought out; so out comes the cake which is a replica of Agrippa's ship, equipped even with marshmallows on the ends of the oars. Marcellus decides to be a little pain in the butt (high spirited?) and calls Agrippa the candy cherry that is right in the center of the cake. Of course this analogy annoys Agrippa. To calm things down Augustus calls in a Greek orator, Aristarchus, to perform a "prose hymn" about the victory of Augustus and Agrippa over Cleopatra and Mark Antony. After the performance, Marcellus belittles the significance of the Battle of Actium. Agrippa leaves the party in a huff and Augustus follows him out to calm him down.

In the next scene, Augustus calls Livia to his study. Agrippa claims that, although he has nothing against Marcellus, he wants to leave Rome. Augustus allows it because he wants a man younger than Agrippa to succeed him. Tiberius, before leaving for Germany, complains to Livia that Augustus never liked him. Livia tries to reassure him that he does actually have a chance to succeed Augustus because Livia took an omen on the day Tiberius was born. A chicken laid an egg on his sign of the zodiac, which must mean that Tiberius will be the next emperor. Tiberius does not place much hope in Livia's " prophetic chickens."

The peristyle scene is fairly inconsequential. Livia antagonizes Octavia, politely of course. Augustus and Marcellus plan the upcoming games. Everyone complains about the crowded streets (reminiscent of Juvenal III). Livia and Julia discuss Marcellus' appointment as city magistrate and the opposition to this appointment led by the Senatorial followers of Agrippa. Livia nudges the conversation toward the topic of marriage so that mention can be made of Tiberius. Julia announces that she is happy with Marcellus. Livia comments on the lack of children in Julia's marriage, but Julia reminds her that she, Livia, also does not have any children with her present husband, Augustus. Livia confides that she once had hopes of a Tiberius-Julia union. Julia admits that she used to adore Tiberius, but adds"how foolish one is when one is young." At this the smile fades from Livia's face.

Fade to the beginning of the games. Augustus chides Livia for bringing along reading material, reminding her that Julius Caesar offended the audience reading his correspondence during events. Marcellus enters and is greeted enthusiastically by the crowd, who obviously like and support him.

 

This episode brilliantly establishes our initial leading characters:

Good ole boy Augustus and his chief sidekick, Agrippa. Augustus is a genius politician and Agrippa's a genius general, so they are a natural pair. Played by Brian Blessed (who gives Augustus rather more warmth than history alleges) and John Paul.

And in the other corner, currently outweighed, but possessing the sharpest wits and a complete lack of scruples (both belonging to one member of the pair), we have Livia Augusta (Augustus's wife) and her dullard son by her first marriage, Tiberius. Played (to the hilt) by the riveting Sian Phillips and the very good George Baker.

Augustus seems to have no clue about Livia's true nature--perhaps he doesn't believe in the equality of women. Neither does Livia, of course; she knows she's superior. She just doesn't believe in broadcasting it. Tiberius, of course, knows the truth. Baker gives the impression that he's trying to resist Livia's schemes; they appeal to him, of course, but not *that* much. Especially as they involve him marrying Julia, Augustus's daughter, and only child.

Graves gives a surprisingly sympathetic version of Julia, whom history has treated rather harshly. In the book, he says that when Julia went to Livia to ask for help in attracting Tiberius, the latter gave Julia an aphrodisiac, which turned her into a nymphomaniac. She's very shrewdly cast in the mini-series, as a rather plump good-time girl.

Anyway, the episode is a draw. Livia gets rid of Julia's first husband, her cousin, Marcellus; but because of unrest at Rome, Julia is married by her father to Agrippa and not Tiberius.

 

You make it sound like it's a prize fight, Zaz

The thing about Tiberius is that he never really gets what he truly wants. Which is the love of his mother and the respect of Augustus. In Graves's novel, it's said that Tiberius had three good influences in his life, his brother, his father and his first wife Vispania. But a lot of this is discussed in the next episode.

And I think Julia and Marcellus did have a child, but it died young.

 

No; it's Vipsania, Nerva (a friend), and Drusus (his brother).

 

Nerva came later, it was definitely his father.

 

He was very young when his father died.

 

Tiberius's father died in 33 BC, Tiberius was born in 42 BC which means he was about ten or eleven when he died. And Tiberius and Drusus were raised by their father until he died.

But enough of dates and such. You do get to hear one of Augustus's sayings "As quick as boiled asparagus" in the scene where he is telling Livia of Julia's marriage. Livia tells him off for saying it, but I think it's rather clever.

And apparently, Augustus DID use that expression at least according to Dio.

 

Boiled asparagus takes about two minutes...

 

It seems as if the first episode is sort of split between Touch of Murder and a Family Affairs. So I'll put the second half here and then we can move onto Waiting in the Wings'

Watch the start here

Family Affairs

Characters
Antonia, Augustus, Gaius, Drusus, Julia, Livia, Lucius, Musa, Tiberius, Vispsania, Germanicus, Livilla, Claudius

Plot outline

The episode opens with Claudius narrating his history. Nine years have passed since the end of the last episode. Agrippa is dead, poisoned by Livia. Tiberius has been forced to divorce Vipsania and marry Julia. Claudius describes Livia as a patient, wicked woman.
In the first scene Livia?s sons, Tiberius and Drusus, are in a palaestra playing bladder ball, then wrestling. Drusus wins and tells Tiberius he?s out of shape. Tiberius complains that he?s been in Rome the past ten years as Augustus? errand boy. Real men march and build forts. He envies Drusus his time on the Rhine. He nostalgically reminisces about his good old army days when he was a soldier?s worst nightmare. He hates his administrative duties and most of all ?that bitch Julia they made me marry?.

The scene moves to the Ladies? Massage Room where Julia is complaining to Antonia of Tiberius? indifference. Antonia says the problem is that he never wanted to divorce Vipsania. Then Julia makes catty remarks about Vipsania?s weight. (see Ovid AA III 280 where Ovid lists thinness as a defect of physical beauty.) Julia says that she saw Valerius after he starved himself to death and that he looked better. Antonia blames Augustus for forcing the marriage. Julia blames Livia. She remembers that Livia tried to arrange an alliance when Marcellus died, but Agrippa beat her to it. Julia then dismisses the masseuses. She confides to Antonia her suspicions about Livia?s role in Marcellus? death. Julia playfully blames Antonia for her new found massage room modesty.

Back to the boys in the bath where they are scraping each other's back. Tiberius reveals to his brother that he has ?dark thoughts?. Drusus tries to cheer him up. Tiberius recalls an old saying about the Claudian family, "They say the tree of the Claudians produces two kinds of apples, the sweet and the sour." He sees Drusus as sweet and himself as sour. Drusus asks "What type is mother?" Tiberius replies ?They say a snake bit her once...and died.? Tiberius asks Drusus whether he thinks that the monarchy will survive Augustus. Drusus reveals himself to be a republican. Tiberius admits his ambitions cost him his happiness. He whines (and whines) about Vipsania. The brothers exchange words of devotion.

The scene then cuts to Augustus playing EMPIRE (Roman RISK?) with Gaius and Lucius. Augustus is using the game to teach them about military strategy. In the middle of the game it is reported that Drusus is leaving. Augustus tells the boys that duty must always come before pleasure and that they should accompany him to say goodbye to the man who controls all Rome?s armies in Germany. Augustus encourages the boys to ask Drusus about a military issue that arose in the game. Drusus refers them to the Commentaries of Julius Caesar. They smugly reply that they've read it twice. Augustus delights in their precocity. It is clear that Augustus is training the boys to succeed him. Augustus and Drusus take a walk in the garden. We learn that Antonia is pregnant. Augustus comments about the need for the upper classes to breed. He asks Drusus if he has said good-bye to his mother. Drusus responds, "She knows where I am, but she's with the Parthian ambassadors now." His remarks prompt Augustus to praise Livia?s administrative efforts on his behalf, ?I'd have given up long ago if it weren't for her." Augustus goes on a mini tirade blaming Marc Antony for his princeps predicament, agreeing with Drusus that it's really too much for one man". Drusus asks Augustus if it's not too late to return to the Republic. Augustus replies that Drusus is just like his father who was also a poli

 

A Touch of Murder

Good intro. But the complexity of the overall stories & subplots was still pretty intact. I didn't fully understand all the subtle details and subplots of this series until after I'd seen it all the way through for the 4th or 5th time.

The show was made purely by its performances. It was those same subtle things in the main cast's performances (the very things I'd missed the first few times) that made me appreciate it much more after I'd figured everything out. Given the (typical BBC) low budget, the writing & cast were the only thing that could make it succeed. I still think of it as a series that's actually being played on a theater stage, instead of a film soundstage or TV studio, thus forcing the perfomances to really shine.

This first ep does a great job of displaying how years of peace & prosperity after the civil wars have made the upper class grown soft, complacent, and self-indulgent. Decadence was always a part of the patrician class, but now it's clear that there's one class even higher than traditional patricians: the "royal" family of Augustus & Livia's immediate families. Agrippa is clearly bored & frustrated--his longtime friend doesn't need him in any practical capacity, so he wants to move away. Augustus doesn't want him to leave, yet he seems to know there's no real reason for Agrippa to stay. Augustus (to me anyway) seems torn: he doesn't seem to be able to reconcile his desire to have a family successor (thus creating a royal dynasty) with his desire to keep the existing peace in Rome by keeping a popular (low-born) guy like Agrippa around to keep the rabble happy. He's trapped in a problem of his own making. He united the empire under his name, but knows the Senate and commoners don't want a "king" in the strict sense, so he waffles and stalls until he needs to make a decision. His ambivalence remains throughout the series, so I find it perversely logical that Livia takes the steps she does. When you look at it from the outside through cold, logical political analysis, she actually makes sense.

Livia = best. villain. EVER. I wouldn't be surprised if she was the true inspiration for Palpatine. Philips' version of her makes a good counterpoint to Augustus: she's cool, calm, thoughtful to his impulsive outbursts (was he bipolar?). After rewatching, you can even see some subtle paranoia at certain moments.

Good as this ep is, I tend to like later episodes better, but that's probably because by then you've grown used to the characters and know what to expect from them.

 

And...we're both wrong. Here's the novel:

"My uncle Tiberius was one of the bad Claudians. He was morose, reserved and cruel, but there had been three people whose influence had checked these elements in his nature. First there was my father, one of the best Claudians, cheerful, open, and generous; next there was Augustus, a very honest, merry, kindly man who disliked Tiberius, but treated him gently for his mother's sake; lastly, there was Vipsania."


Graves' characterization of Augustus, in particular, doesn't match with history. Augustus was an extremely gifted and tough politician, not a naif.

Anyway, Round Two. Later, when Claudius asks her about his father's death in the interests of historical accuracy, Livia claims that she did not kill Drusus, but that she had decided she would have to do so eventually. Whether she was quite truthful about this, who can say? After all, she wanted Claudius to do something very important for her, very shortly.

Nine years later, Livia has offed Agrippa, and finally achieved Tiberius's marriage to Julia. The problem is that they are unsuited, and the only child dies. And the marriage to Agrippa produced five children, Gaius, Lucius, Agrippina, Julilla, and Postumus. The two elder boys are adopted by Augustus, leaving Postumus to carry on Agrippa's name. I don't agree that Graves portrayed the boys negatively: "Gaius, who was not a bad fellow at bottom (and neither was Lucius)...but [Augustus] spoiled them so shamelessly that it was wonder that they did not turn out far worse than they did.)"

Livia's relations with her own children are no more rewarding. Tiberius is poor material for her in a good many ways, and Drusus is too much like his natural father to be useful at all, except as a soldier. We see her plot and plan, with no interest in anything but power. This--in Graves' version--relieves Augustus of much of the scut work of Empire; but she is not plotting and planning for Augustus' progeny.

In this episode some of the age difficulties are obvious, as they were in the first one. Antonia looks like Drusus' mother, for instance; and Tiberius his father (they are supposed to be two years apart in age.)

Baker is very good as Tiberius, though. Tiberius is a sort of Roman Richard Nixon, an intelligent, very able man who thoroughly lacks charm, and imposes himself on history by persistence rather than anything else. In this case, however, the persistence is Livia's. Tiberius is thoroughly ambivalent about his fate. He wants power, but not Julia; and he's not prepared to fake it, which must have exasperated Livia.

So Livia is still in there pitching, but her second (Tiberius) is growing increasingly hard to handle. Augustus' second, Agrippa, is dead, but has been replaced by his five children.

Still a draw.

 

That's an interesting take on Tiberius, but I'm not so sure he wants power so much. Remember how ready he was to retire in one episode? And he wanted to leave Rome to escape Julia, and possibly his mother.

 

I've only just caught up with this thread, but it is a great topic. I discovered the series when it was repeated on BBC2 just after Graves' death. It's a brilliant soap opera, a great ensemble -- and one hardly notices the sparse sets or lack of exterior filming.

I'm dumb-founded by the long quotes from wikipedia etc. about the historical 'accuracy' of the series. It's a work of historical fiction, not a text-book! The long passage above about Claudius completely misses the point that the whole story is told from Claudius' point of view, it is a character study. Of course Claudius is going to blame everyone around him. Good grief.

And as for: "Yes, the Romans consulted the Sibyline Books, but no ancient source provides this foretelling of Graves' I, Claudius" -- I can't even begin to find words to describe how mind-numbingly dumb this statement is ...