Book Description
As an author, Nepos wrote smooth-flowing, easy-to-understand prose, and this book offers students a chance to enjoy the beauty of the language. The book includes an introduction, original text, student notes, vocabulary, and illustrations. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A slice of ancient life...
We used this text in the second year Latin readings course I had in college.As the introduction by Roebuck states, Cornelius Nepos is considered an easy author to translate, given that his language is common and plain in construction, not given to a wide range of artistic flourishes that make for tricky translation (Julius Caesar was also said to write in this way).

Cornelius Nepos is a somewhat shadowy figure, and not all of his work has survived into the modern world.Catullus was a friend of Nepos, and dedicated a work of poetry to him; Catullus was fond of Nepos' three-volume 'History of the World', which has not survived.

The sections in this text come from Nepos' work, 'de Viris Illustribus', in which Nepos wrote of grand persons foreign and domestic in military and political realms, for the most part.The three here include two Greek generals, Alcibiades and Dion (the largest group of 'lives' from Nepos are of Greek generals), and one from the Roman group, Atticus.Atticus was at one time one of the most influential men in Rome, contemporary with Cicero, and close friend and business associate of Nepos.It is likely this 'life' was written in the lifetime of Atticus, and amended after his death.

Roebuck gives an introduction to the book by covering a brief history of the texts (these represent the earliest examples of biography in Latin that have survived, according to Roebuck).He also provides historical background for each of the three figures of Alcibiades, Dion and Atticus, as well as a general Greek and Roman world overview.

This is a book for those learning Latin moreso than for those seeking history lessons.There is a vocabulary glossary of 30 pages in the back, as well as an eight-page index of proper names with annotations.The actual Latin text comprises only 40 pages; by comparison, there are 43 pages of notes for aid in translating the Latin text (and the print is generally smaller on those pages).

My experience with Nepos and this text by Bolchazy-Carducci (the same people who produce 'Cat in the Hat' in Latin, and such) was a good one, and I recommend it as a text for anyone who has had a basic Latin class, and wants to turn the hand to translating something 'real'. ... Read more

Book Description

Cornelius Nepos was born in Cisalpine Gaul but lived in Rome and was a friend of Cicero, Atticus, and Catullus. Most of his writings, which included poems, moral examples from history, a chronological sketch of general history, a geographical work, Lives of Cato the Elder and Cicero, and other biographies, are lost. Extant is a portion of his 'De Viris Illustribus': (i) part of his parallel lives of Roman and non-Roman famous men, namely the portion containing lives of non-Roman generals (all Greeks except three) and a chapter on kings; and (ii) two lives from the class of historians. The lives are short popular biographies of various kinds, written in a usually plain readable style, of value today because of Nepos's use of many good sources.

Customer Reviews (1)

Brief Biographies of Great Generals
Cornelius Nepos produced a considerable literary output:history, geography, poetry, and other works including biographies of famous men.The only surviving examples of his work are a few biographies from his work "De Viris Illustribus,"which he apparently modeled after Plutarch's "Lives."

The surviving pieces consist of an introduction, several biographies of non-Roman generals, and two biographies of Roman historians.The bios are brief, anecdotal, and entertaining.They probably have little in the way of historical value, but they are nonetheless worth reading. ... Read more

Product Description
History of Rome written in Latin, with notes, glossary and commentary. ... Read more

Book Description
This scarce antiquarian book is included in our special Legacy Reprint Series. In the interest of creating a more extensive selection of rare historical book reprints, we have chosen to reproduce this title even though it may possibly have occasional imperfections such as missing and blurred pages, missing text, poor pictures, markings, dark backgrounds and other reproduction issues beyond our control. Because this work is culturally important, we have made it available as a part of our commitment to protecting, preserving and promoting the world's literature. ... Read more

Book Description
This book, the flagship of the new Clarendon Ancient History Series, provides a complete translation of and historical commentary on the most important works of Cornelius Nepos (c.99-c.24 B.C.).In addition to Nepos's biographies of Cato and Atticus, the book includes the Preface to the
Foreign Generals, Fragments, and the Letters of Cornelia. ... Read more

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edited with introduction notes, exercises and vocabulary by john edmund barss:an elementary classic ... Read more

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10 1/2" tall. 856pp. French translation at the top of the page, with the Latin original in smaller type at the bottom of the page. ... Read more

Product Description
the story literally translated with notes. ... Read more