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| Imperium |
I read Robert Harris’ Imperium as part of my ongoing fascination with Roman history. Unlike Roma–which I just finished–Imperium doesn’t try to tell the entire story of the kingdom and republic of Rome. It centers on the early life of Marcus Tullius Cicero and his quest to become consul. Unusually (I think), it’s narrated by Cicero’s secretary, Tiro. Tiro really did exist and really was Cicero’s secretary. He wrote a biography of Cicero, but it was lost. Imperium is a fictional version of that biography. While I understand the desire to use this historical detail, I wonder why Harris chose not to try and get inside the head of one of the world’s greatest orators and a major figure in Roman history.
Imperium picks up as Cicero finishes his posting as a magistrate in Sicily and heads to Rome to take his place as a senator. At that time, Rome was still a republic and the Senate was still a going concern. After getting involved in a major corruption case, Cicero becomes aedile and continues to rise through the ranks. The novel does not follow the traditional single plot arc. Instead, there are several. As Cicero wins higher offices, he keeps getting involved in bigger and bigger conspiracies.
Throughout the novel, Cicero faces ethical dilemma after ethical dilemma. He’s caught between political advancement and his Republican (in the Roman sense, not the modern sense) values to do the right things. As a young man, he choses to prosecute a corrupt governor and alienates the aristocrats. But as he rises and the stakes get higher, he starts to compromise those values. And yet, Tiro keeps you on Cicero’s side. Even though you’re not inside his head, you can clearly see and even understand why he makes his choices.
This novel follows the history closely, glossing over some events in order to get to the big events in Cicero’s life. But because the real Tiro’s biography was lost, we don’t know all the details. Harris does exercise some poetic license by filling in dialogue and the relationships and the emotions, but I sensed a certain timidity in this book. It seemed like Harris was reluctant to invent too much, to take too many liberties. Imperium read more like creative nonfiction than like fiction. Again, it’s a choice I don’t understand.
I am, however, looking forward to the next book in the series, Conspirata, which covers the opening salvos in the battles between Cicero and Caesar.