Marguerite Yourcenar – Memoirs of Hadrian - Review

One of the most important skills a student must be acquirer when learning history, amongst others, is the ability to evoke a state of empathy for the time period under study. Names, dates, and events can only provide us with the obvious and superficial; however, in my opinion, to actually attempt to place oneself emotionally at a particular place on the time-line can give us greater insight and a much more profound understanding. Through this method, too, history is not merely words on a page, but something tangible and relevant.

Memoirs of Hadrian conjures the world of ancient times through the eyes of the Roman Emperor, Hadrian, with such sensual accuracy that, wholly or in part, a conscious attempt at 'suspension of disbelief' is not necessary, because one can sit back and let the author do it for you...Yourcenar is a magician at literary prose. In her 'Reflection on the Composition', she writes a curious comment:

"Time itself has nothing to do with it. It is always surprising to me that my contemporaries, masters as they consider themselves to be over space, apparently remain unaware that one can contract the distance between centuries at will." (276)

This is a unique and somewhat mysterious skill to have, and a skill every the historian should possess or at least learn because history is so vital to the present day.

This is a magnificent novel because it combines historical erudition with a superlative prose style, placing the reader into the time of one of the most fascinating Roman Emperors of the second century. As is well known to students of ancient Rome, Hadrian came to power after Trajan and stopped Rome's imperialist expansion, concentrating his efforts on domestic issues, enriching culturally, Rome and her colonies. Hadrian was an expert politician, a man of letters, artist, visionary, philosopher, investigator of the divine, poet, and lover. He is known as the traveling Emperor because he spent most of his reign abroad, visiting Rome's many colonies.

This exquisite text's overall theme is a man's confrontation with his mortality through recalling and narrating his life. Death is the central theme of this book. Hadrian is writing his memoirs to his benefactor, Marcus Aurelius, the philosopher Emperor, describing his life and passing on what wisdom he thought he had gained over a long and full existence. Here is a man who confronted life with a fundamental curiosity and wanted to face death with his eyes wide open...

This  novel is a classic and a must for historians and lovers of literature.