The Eternal Decline and Fall of Rome, Edward J. Watts
The Eternal Decline and Fall of Rome, Edward J. Watts
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The Eternal Decline and Fall of Rome
The History of a Dangerous Idea

Author: Edward J. Watts

Narrator: David Colacci

Unabridged: 11 hr 17 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 03/01/2022


Synopsis

As this book intriguingly explores, for those who would make Rome great again and their victims, ideas of Roman decline and renewal have had a long and violent history.

The decline of Rome has been a constant source of discussion for more than 2200 years. Everyone from American journalists in the twenty-first century AD to Roman politicians at the turn of the third century BC have used it as a tool to illustrate the negative consequences of changes in their world. Roman prophets of decline were, ultimately, proven correct—a fact that makes their modern invocations all the more powerful.

The Eternal Decline and Fall of Rome tells the stories of the people who built their political and literary careers around promises of Roman renewal as well as those of the victims they blamed for causing Rome's decline. The story begins during the Roman Republic just after 200 BC. It proceeds through the empire of Augustus and his successors, traces the Roman loss of much of western Europe in the fifth century AD, and follows Roman history until its fall in 1453. If Rome illustrates the profound danger of the rhetoric of decline, it also demonstrates the rehabilitative potential of a rhetoric that focuses on collaborative restoration, a lesson of great relevance to our world today.

About Edward J. Watts

Edward J. Watts is Alkiviadis Vassiliadis Endowed Chair and Professor of History at the University of California, San Diego. His books include Mortal Republic: How Rome Fell into Tyranny, The Final Pagan Generation, and Hypatia: The Life and Legend of an Ancient Philosopher.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Tim

Watts' excellent earlier books have focused on his area of speciality - the Roman Empire of Late Antiquity. But here he has taken on a large theme and so his book's timeframe spans from the early Roman Republic to the modern day. This is ambitious, but on the whole he manages to maintain the quality......more

Goodreads review by Alberto

Una "historia de la historia" que recopila el uso (y el abuso) de la idea de decadencia y renovación de Roma como justificación de múltiples políticas (mayormente agresivas) a lo largo de la historia. Como suele pasar en libros tan ambiciosos como este (Especialmente, cuando la extensión es limitada......more

Goodreads review by Chris

3.5 stars. It's a good book, but at times early on it felt like Watts pushed his points a bit too hard. Rome had a traditional narrative of its own decline that dated back to the rise of Rome after the 2nd Punic War. Cato the Elder spoke against decadence and encroaching Greek influence. The 2nd part......more

Goodreads review by Michael

This book is a fairly easy but poignant read for now and our times. Also, if you want an overview of history focused on political rhetoric vs. realities of the periods from the Middle Republic to the Early Modern period. It is one narrative of Roman history that makes connection with the present in......more

Goodreads review by Jarrett

In “The Eternal Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,” Watts compellingly traces how politicians used the idea of Roman decline and renewal throughout Roman history—from the Republic all the way to the fall of Constantinople and even beyond—to call for political change to return to glory. Watts take......more