The
full story is given here:
Whether
the story of Camillus and the Schoolmaster has any basis in truth is, I think,
irrelevant; early Roman history is, to an extent, catch as catch can. What
matters is the mindset that underpins the story, a mindset that
reinforces Rome’s image of itself.
[1]
There is a real sense of honourable behaviour in this extract and that Roman
concept of virtūs, a noun used in the text, which can variously
translate as “courage” or “manliness”, but equally as “merit” or “character”;
it’s about doing the right thing - even when dealing with an enemy – about
fighting fairly and never being a traitor (proditor) to one’s own
people. The idea that underage boys would be used as a bargaining tool to
achieve victory utterly revolts Camillus as he lists the “weaponry” that, in
time of war, would be considered virtuous:
ego
Romanis artibus, virtute, opere, armis, sicut
Veios, vincam │ I shall vanquish them, as I vanquished Veii, by Roman arts,
by courage and strategy and weapons
[2]
Camillus speaks not only on behalf of himself but also the entire Roman people:
'non
ad similem … tui nec populum nec imperatorem … venisti. │ “You … have
come neither to a people nor a commander similar to yourself.
[3]
Note how Camillus by the use of the personal pronouns emphasises the difference
between their strategies:
eos
tu … vicisti; ego … vincam i.e. you did it in a villainous
way but I will do it the right way
[4]
eos tu … novo scelere vicisti │ you have conquered them … with a new
act of villainy
The
use of novus here can imply that this criminal behaviour is strange or
unusual, something that had never been done before (and, certainly from
the perspective of Camillus, not going to be done again).
[5]
sunt et belli sicut pacis iura │ there are rights of war just as there are
rights of peace; this underlines a consistent ethical code applicable to
both peaceful and hostile situations.
That
contrast in approaches is continued in:
iusteque
ea non minus quam fortiter didicimus gerere │ and we have learned to fight
justly no less than bravely
i.e.
we have learned to do this (even if others have not)
[6]
arma habemus non adversus eam aetatem, cui etiam captis urbibus parcitur,
sed adversus armatos et ipsos, qui nec laesi nec lacessiti a nobis castra
Romana ad Veios oppugnarunt. │ We do not use our weapons against those of an
age which is spared even when cities have been captured, but against those
who are also armed themselves, and who, neither injured nor provoked by us,
attacked the Roman camp at Veii.
i.e.
we don’t take children hostage to win our battles and, incidentally, we didn’t
start this
[7]
The relationship between schoolmaster and school pupil is reversed, the boys
now given authority to beat the man, bound and humiliated, and return him to
the city not only to face the wraith of the population but also, we can argue,
as a signal to the enemy that the Romans would never stoop so low.
A
painting is by its very nature a personal representation in the mind of an
artist. Nevertheless, the depiction in the work of Poussin (1594 – 1665)
absolutely reinforces the overall “message” which the event in the story itself
conveys; had the Ancient Romans seen this painting no doubt they would have
loved it.
https://www.nortonsimon.org/art/detail/F.1970.14.P/
The incident depicted here is from Livy’s account of the life of Republican leader and general Furius Camillus. While the general was besieging the town of Falerii, a local schoolmaster lured his pupils to the Roman camp, hoping to offer them as hostages. Finding the schoolmaster guilty of treason, Camillus offered him up to his students for punishment. The schoolmaster’s twisted and distorted figure becomes a symbol of immorality and evil. The ethical Camillus, by contrast, is erect and well proportioned. Whatever the political overtones, Poussin’s composition encourages us to contemplate the difference between shapeless ugliness and harmonious form. (Norton Simon Museum)
No comments:
Post a Comment