Marguerite Yourcenar (1903–1987)

Really enjoyed the insight this gave me into the world of the ealy milennium Roman Empire. There are many passages that spring to mind, involving the early life of the would-be Emperor of the world, the formation of Hadrian's mindset by years in the Army and in Athens alike. The messages I feel are probably very in keeping with what Hadrian himself would be thinking (this is a historical novel, not a source work). I found his achievements and his observations of his own life among those achievements very moving. Don't forget to read the last section of notes on how the novel came to be over the author's lifetime and interruption by WWII. Many many sections of this work will be in my mind as long as I live.… (more)

MEMORIE DI ADRIANO

Come chiunque altro, io non dispongo che di tre mezzi per valutare l'esistenza umana: lo studio di se stessi e' il metodo piu' difficile, il piu' insidioso, ma anche il piu' fecondo; l'osservazione degli uomini, i quali nella maggior parte dei casi s'adoperano per nasconderci i loro segreti o per farci credere di averne; e i libri, con i caratteristici errori di prospettiva che sorgono tra le righe. (p. 317)

Quando tutti i calcoli astrusi si dimostrano falsi, quando persino i filosofi non hanno piu' nulla da dirci, e' scusabile volgerci verso il cicaleccio fortuito degli uccelli, o verso il contrappeso remoto degli astri. (p. 321)

Il vero luogo natio e' quello dove per la prima volta si e' posato uno sguardo consapevole su se stessi: la mia prima patria sono stati i libri. (p. 325)

... volevo trovare la cerniera ove la nostra volonta' s'articola al destino; ove la disciplina, anziche' frenarla, asseconda la natura. (p. 334)

Adriano: ... aver ragione troppo presto equivale ad aver torto. (p. 369)

Animula, vagula, blandula
Hospes comesque corporis
Quae nunc abidis in loca
Pallidula, rigida, nudula,
Nec, ut soles, dabis iocos.

Little soul, roamer and charmer
Body' guest and companion
Who soon will depart to places
Darkish, chilly and misty
An end to all your jokes.


… (more)

Ms. Yourcenar worked on this fictional memoir of the Roman emperor Hadrian for at least 20 years and it is considered a classic of historical fiction. I found it fine, but its greatness may be beyond me. I was very interested in the postscript in which the author describes how she wrote the book, her literary and human sources, which characters were real and which were created, and how and why she made various decisions about content. The only thing that caught my eye was a mention of Jesus which seemed to be an anachronism for someone born in the year 76 CE who was not a Christian.

I read a Kindle version of this book which is not listed in the Goodreads database. It lists illustrations with what looks like an associated dead internet link; so, I saw no figures. Many of the described figures are easily found on the internet.… (more)