Product Description

Written in the form of a testamentary letter from the Emperor Hadrian to his successor, the youthful Marcus Aurelius, this work is as extraordinary for its psychological depth as for its accurate reconstruction of the second century of our era. The author describes the book as a meditation upon history, but this meditation is built upon intensive study of the personal and political life of a great and complex character as seen by himself and his contemporaries, both friends and enemies. Marguerite Yourcenar reconstructs Hadrian's arduous early years, his triumphs and reversals, and his gradual reordering of a war-torn world.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #287728 in Books
• Published on: 1963-01-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 408 pages

Review
"In her brilliant 'psychological novel and meditation on history,' Marguerite Yourcenar has written an imaginatively daring and artistically persuasive 'self-portrait' of Hadrian."--Orville Prescott
-- Review

Historical novel by Marguerite Yourcenar, published in 1951 as Memoires d'Hadrien. In the book, Yourcenar creates a vivid and historically accurate portrait of the 2nd-century Roman Empire under Hadrian's rule. The work is a fictional first-person narrative in the form of Hadrian's letters--mostly to his nephew Marcus Aurelius--written shortly before his death. Contemplative and analytical recollections of his accomplishments, his hopes for Rome, and his personal relationships, the letters reveal Hadrian to be a highly intelligent, often wise man, conscious of the great power he wields. -- The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature

Review

Language Notes
Text: English, French (translation)

Customer Reviews

Work of profound scholarship
Seldom do we find a historical novel written with both so much scholarship and passion. Marguerite Yourcenar not only incarnates the soul and spirit of Emperor Hadrian but of his time as well (second century A.D.). Narrated in the first person, it is the written meditations of a sick man who holds audience with his memories. Suffering from gout, knowing that his remaining days are few, Hadrian leaves a testimony of his life, his accomplishments, his philosophical outlook on life, and some pieces of good advise for his successor Marcus Aurelius. Hadrian was an architect of peace as well as buildings, he felt responsible for sustaining and increasing the beauty of his world, and his duties forced him "to serve as the incarnation of Providence," to the point that he felt he was indeed divine. A lover of the arts, of Greek culture, of the occult, he was above all a pragmatic man whose motto was "Strength, Justice and the Muses." For him life was "like a horse to whose motions one yields, but only after having trained the animal to the utmost." His positive attitude in every life experience allows him to look back as a man fully satisfied... except in matters of love! His passion and tragic death of young Antinous reminds him that "love's play is the only one which threatens to unsettle the soul."

It is history and story written with superb craftsmanship, the end result of painful and laborious 15 years of work and research. It is a psychlogically penetrating portrait of an outstanding figure in history; a man who was able to capture the spirit of his time, which in turn has been recaptured by the genious of Marguerite Yourcenar.

The book grows with age (your age).
I tried to read this book in my 20's; the book fell from my hands. I tried again at 40. The book didn't exactly fall from my hands, but my eyelids kept closing. Now I am 70. The book is so close to my heart that I can barely put it down. I am healthy and not (I hope) near death, but in this reflection on life from a man nearing death, life and its joys and sadnesses stand out more vividly than in any other book I have ever read.

From page 13: "...the flesh itself, that amazing instrument of muscles, blood, and skin, that red-tinged cloud whose lightning is the soul." Has there ever been a better description of the loved one's body?

The enlightened emperor
M. Yourcenar writes a beautiful book in the form of a letter, impersonating Hadrian Augustus retrospecting on his life. No other literary form could illustrate so vividly the mind and soul of a Roman Emperor . Through this 'letter' and Yourcenar's enchanting prose, the reader cannot avoid being fascinated by the intelligence, sensitivity and eclectic curiosity that Hadrian possessed. Not only was he an emperor, but his awareness of the finite relativity of parts within the whole paint him as an able psychologist, sociologist, admirer of beauty and philosopher.