This course provides a detailed examination of the life and administration of the Roman
emperor Augustus (reigned 31 B.C. to A.D.
14), a time of pivotal social and economic
change that forever altered the trajectory of
Roman history. Augustus and his
administration will be examined from a variety
of viewpoints, drawing on a rich dataset that
includes literature, art, architecture,
epigraphy, and ritual practice. The course will
seek to understand how the relatively obscure
young man who succeeded Julius Caesar
aimed to repair and stabilize a society
wracked by civil war and, in so doing, redirect
the nature of the Roman state and of Roman
citizenship. Detailed examination of programs
of art, architecture, and urbanism will reveal the part played by material culture in crafting and
maintaining an “Augustan program”, while close reading of poetry and prose sources produced
with patronage from the emperor will allow a consideration of culture identity as constructed
under Augustus. The success of the Augustan program exerted a strong influence on other
imperial programs in antiquity, as well as influencing modern and postmodern ideas about
leadership, authority, and the state. To that end, the course will conclude by considering the
reception of the Augustan program in antiquity and beyond, including the co-option of Augustan
themes in the twentieth century.