Friends, Neighbors and Countrymen, lend me your ears. Think you know who killed Julius Caesar, well think again. History has long held that Caesar’s long and despotic reign was cut short by the sharp ambitions and daggers of his fellow Roman Senators. Men like Brutus, Mark Anthony and others, who turned against their friend and leader in order to save their beloved Republic from the glutinous excesses of his power. But a new take on this old story, argues Caesar deserves a second look.
Forget what you know about the cruel and despotic ruler crushing the unwashed Roman rabble in his fat little fist, Caesar was a Democrat, a powerful man who had the good of the people at heart and went against the interests of the rich to do it. Ancient Rome, class warfare and the ides of March.
Guests:
Michael Parenti, author of “The Assassination of Julius Caesar: A People’s History of Ancient Rome”
Mary Lefkowitz, professor of Classics at Wellesley College.