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Nero: Life of a Roman Emperor

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Nero: Life of a Roman Emperor

By: Suetonius
Narrated by: Jonathan Waite
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About this listen

 Suetonius' most important surviving work is known as the De Vita Caesarum, a set of twelve biographies of the successive Roman rulers.

The emperor Nero's reign is one weird tale of sexual depravity and extravagant sadism. He was a gifted musician, and is said to have given great concerts of which attendance was compulsory; women were said to have given birth during the performance, and men were driven to fake death to escape. Nero kicked his pregnant wife to death and then had a young boy castrated to replace her as his spouse; then, during the great fire of Rome, he is said to have played the lyre to emphasize the beauty of the destruction. His eccentricities are a continuation of the tradition of his predecessors, only more perverted; Suetonius' account portrays a strange man in strange times.©2016 Compagnie du Savoir (P)2016 Compagnie du Savoir Historical Politics & Activism Presidents & Heads of State World
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what a complete lunatic Nero was. Great insight into his weird and debauched life

Good insight

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The life and personality of Nero is up for debate. The opinions of him are as varied as there are grains of sand on the beach. A man with terrible tendencies, open weaknesses, and a horrifying personality, but is yet credited for being a successful ruler much of his reign, and who was literally set up to fail by his upbringing. Potential to be good, but was pushed towards debauchery through neglect. By far the most fascinating Roman ruler to me personally.

Inside the head of the controversial ruler.

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