Gracci Brothers: Views of Appian and Plutarch Essay Example
By the middle of 2nd century B.C.E, the Roman territory extended as far as the Mediterranean.
The sheer size of the Empire terminated any external threats to the Romans. Instead, towards the end of the 2nd century B.C.E, it brought upon them internal conflicts. The size of the aristocrats was largely outnumbered by the rest, and the admittance into the aristocratic group was very limited.
Soon people started questioning the leaders of Rome, and their disguise of ambition under the name of virtue. Eventually the great social war broke out.One of the key events, that later lead to the social war, was that of the Gracchi brothers. Their lives and roles in the social war can be studied through several primary sources. Two of the most significant sources that allowed us to examine the brothers were the “Parallel Lives” by Plutarch, and the
...‘Roman History’ by Appian. Like all primary sources, these two ancient literatures were questionable in terms of reliability.
By examining the Authors’ backgrounds, their motivation, and their interest in writing their works, we could better understand the way in which the authors perceived the Gracchi brothers. The works of Appian and Plutarch had many similarities in terms of content. These similarities are what are believed today as to be the most reliable truths about the Grachhi brothers. The Gracchi brothers were not the first in their family to have participated in Roman politics. Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus and Gaius Sempronius Gracchus were sons of Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus the Elder. Gracchus the Elder held the offices of tribune, censor, and consul between 180 B.
C.E till 160 B.C.E. Their mother was Cornelia, who was the
daughter of Scipio Cornelius Africanus. As suggested by the origin of the parents, the Gracchi brothers were from a rich and influential plebian family.
They had the enough resources to potentially accomplish successful political careers. However, as we can see in the sources, the brothers did...
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