Then again, perhaps Obama's model is a bit more recent...
Posted on 09/12/2008 2:10:24 PM PDT by Congressman Billybob
Remember the PBS series special on the Roman Emperor, Claudius? The title, which captured the style of his governance, “I, Claudius.” It was a 13-part series on Masterpiece Theater. How many of you saw it? Let’s not always see the same hands.
Well, almost all of you remember some of the history of the Roman Emperors. They ranged from mad and murderous, like Nero, to rational and effective, like Augustine. Hold that thought, and we’ll get to today’s subject.
A good friend, Duncan Parham, is a man of eclectic interests. One of those is rare coins. Last weekend he showed me a catalogue of a major New York dealer, which had coins going back to the Ptolemic regimes in Egypt and the Eutruscans in Italy. What particularly interested me were the Roman Emperor coins. They had coins depicting each the Emperors, many at reasonable prices.
Those coins had a common appearance, which you probably recall from memory. On the obverse of each coin was a silhouette of the leader in question, with an olive branch wreath. Both aspects had meaning.
The Emperor was not in the business of looking at his subjects, nor were the subjects encouraged to look into his eyes. Hence, the profile image in which the Emperor could be admired from a distance.
The olive wreath has several meanings. One denotes peace. Another comes from the ancient Olympics, in which the winners were crowned with such wreaths to show the respect they had just earned from the people. Peace and respect of the people were symbols that Roman Emperors might want, though the truth is that all of them gained power either by murdering their competitors, winning a war, or being descendants of ones who murdered or fought their way into power.
Now, think about a personal quirk of a presidential candidate, a quirk you have all seen dozens of times. When Barack Obama gives a speech he seldom looks squarely at the audience, either the live one or the TV one. With each of his ringing phrases, he looks first to the left, later to the right, showing just his profile to the audience.
Imagine an olive wreath on his brow, the way he would appear on a coin, sometime after he became President, if that ever occurs. Nothing like thinking ahead, now is there?
But, there is more to it than just that. Obama does not present a complete profile, he offers a three-quarters profile with his chin up, gazing into the middle distance. You have seen that pose before, also.
You saw it in “socialist realism” as favored by the dictators in the former USSR, and the dictator in Nazi Germany. It was not solely there. It is also in the religious art of the Middle Ages and the early Renaissance. What is the common denominator of all those representations of “great” people?
The point of all those portrayals are that the subject, the person shown, is greater than your average man. He (it’s usually a man) also has a greater vision than your average man. And always, always, the viewer is expected to look up to, respect, or even revere the person in the portrait.
When these are religious paintings, only a person anointed by God would be favored with that pose by the artist. When the image is secular, as the famous poster of Vladimir Lenin, the inference is that the subject is anointed by truth in the form of history.
Of course, when the person in question is in the process of making history, he is self-anointed. And, if he strikes the pose on his own, without the intervention of an artist, well that’s the same as a Roman Emperor placing the wreath on his own head. A few Emperors, and an occasional King, was in such a hurry as to crown himself. In a democratic republic, which the United States supposedly is, no one is supposed to “crown” himself. But when you think about the public posing done by Obama as he speaks, is that anything other than a self-coronation?
History was not very kind to I. Claudius. It doesn’t look like history will be kind to I, Obama, either.
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About the Author: John Armor practiced law in the US Supreme Court for 33 years. He now lives in Highlands, NC, and is working on a book on Thomas Paine. John_Armor@aya.yale.edu
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In I Claudius, if I remember correctly?/ Claduis’s wife challenged the biggest whore in Rome as to how many men she could treat. The wife of Claudius won, and when Claudius returned he had her killed.
This was a very interesting series for PBS at the time.
Very astute!
Obama is a 'poser' in more ways than one.
STE=Q
Cheers!
But do today's socialists (intetrnational socialists really, though their previous international communist label is only barely no longer applicable) relate to the Roman Emperors?
The icon graphic is the same. But is that because of their same root in the “glory of the ruler” that Stalin, Lenin, and Mao held sway?
I'm not saying the politics or economics are the same. But “the glory of the ruler” is exactly the same.
John / Billybob
Oh.
Never mind.
That is where the teleprompters are.
No, Obama is posing on purpose. Note that he is not looking at the teleprompters. He's looking above them and into the middle distance. That's the heroic pose.
John / Billybob
Certainly, the “bread and circuses” is exactly the same: Even to the point of today’s ever-more-salicious “American Gladiator” (instead of pro sports) “caged death matches” (instead of wrestling or boxing), the video games that DO kill and main and rob and assault, the reality (instant gratification) shows and the professional welfare class.
Captain Kirk meet Obama
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGXkHYw1cyI
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Thanks grey_whiskers for the ping, and Congressman Billybob for the plug to GGG. :') |
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Then again, perhaps Obama's model is a bit more recent...
Love the arugala! Nice touch, that.
Good post/thread. How ‘bout a steel cage death match between myself and Bill Ayers to satisfy the masses?
One day [Caligula] was on the Oration Platform in the Market Place dressed as Jove and making a speech. “I intend shortly,” he said, “to build a city for my occupation on top of the Alps. We Gods prefer mountain-tops to unhealthy river-valleys. From the Alps I shall have a wider view of my Empire—France, Italy, Switzerland, the Tyrol and Germany. If I see any treason hatching anywhere below me, I shall give a warning growl of thunder so! (He growled in his throat.) If the warning is disregarded I shall blast the traitor with this lightning of mine, so! (He hurled his piece of lightning at the crowd. It hit a statue and bounced off harmlessly.) A stranger in the crowd, a shoemaker from Marseilles on a sight-seeing visit to Rome, burst out laughing. Caligula had the fellow arrested and brought nearer the platform, then bending down he asked frowning: “Who do I seem to you to be?” “A big humbug,” said the shoemaker. Caligula was puzzled. “Humbug?” he repeated. “I, a humbug!” “Yes,” said the Frenchman, “I’m only a poor French shoemaker and this is my first visit to Rome. And I don’t know any better. If anyone at home did what you’re doing he’d be a big humbug.”Caligula began to laugh too. “You poor half-wit,” he said. “Of course he would be. That’s just the difference.”
— Robert Graves, I, Claudius.
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LOL!
A classic potlatch
I wonder if I can.....
Remember, I used that dog with the shrinking Hillary? But I composited that one.
Hope this doesn’t post twice!!
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