Quo Vadis: A Narrative of the Time of Nero by Henryk Sienkiewicz, Part 1

The Catholic Thought book club read the novel Quo Vadis  by the Polish author and Nobel Prize in Literature winner Henryk Sienkiewicz.  It’s novel set in first century Rome—the 60s to be exact—under the Emperor Nero and of course the early Christians.  You may have seen one of several movies based on the novel, and, while I have not seen any of them, the novel must sure exceed them.  This is the first post of which there could be as many as eleven.  In this first post I’ll give an introduction, but in this and the other posts I will provide a chapter by chapter summary, any pertinent discussion from the book club, and one sample excerpt to give a flavor of the writing and story.  I found this to be an extraordinary novel, and well deserved as Sienkiewicz’s acclaim for Nobel Prize. 

Introduction:

As the subtitle implies us, “A Narrative of the Time of Nero,” Quo Vadis is a historical novel set in first century within the Roman Empire.  “Quo Vadis” translates to “Where are you going?” and was published in in Polish in 1896 by Henryk Sienkiewicz.  The story centers around a love interest between Marcus Vinicius, a Roman tribune and patrician, and therefore pagan, and Callina or sometimes called Lygia, a convert Christian and a daughter of a deceased barbarian king.  Like most historical novels there are a number of fictitious characters and characters taken out of the historical time.  Both the central characters are fictitious.  Also like most historical novels, there is a vast sweep of events and many characters.  You can read the major character list on the novel’s Wikipedia entry here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quo_Vadis_(novel)  You will recognize the Emperor Nero, deranged and known for his narcissism and persecutor of Christians.  Of Nero we know he was emperor when the great fire of Rome occurred, and indeed some claimed he set or had the fire himself and then turned and blamed the Christians and followed up with a great persecution of Christians.  I expect this will be a scene in the novel.

The character list also includes the apostles Peter and Paul who were in Rome at the time of Nero’s persecution of the Christians.  I expect their martyrdom will also be dramatized.  If Quo Vadis employs other historical novel techniques, I expect there will be an alternating between Roman pagan scenes and Christian scenes culminating in some great climax between the two world views.  But I have not read any summary except of the love interest between the two central characters.

Henryk Sienkiewicz was born in Poland in 1846 to a noble but impoverished family.  The family still had a coat of arms.  He started as a travel writer, including spending time in the United States, and a journalist, and attempted several fiction efforts early on.  The shorter pieces were published but not the novels.  He finally published his first novel in 1880, a historical novel, and from 1883 to 1888 went on to write three novels which are known as The Trilogy, narrating the major events in Polish history. Sienkiewicz was of the persuasion that a work of art, especially a novel “should strengthen and ennoble life, rather than undermining and debasing it.”  One would expect that there is a strong moral element to his works and speak to the “good” in the transcendentals of goodness, truth, and beauty. 

Sienkiewicz published Quo Vadis in 1886 at the age of forty.  He went on to write a number of epic historical novels, but he seems best remembered for his The Trilogy and Quo Vadis.  His work was extremely popular in his day both in his native land and throughout Europe.  He received the Nobel Prize for his “epic works” in 1905 and lived until 1916 to the age of 70.  He has a lasting legacy in Poland and in many European countries.

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Choosing a Translation:

I was reading up on the translations. There are basically two translations available. The Jerimiah Curtain translation of 1897 and the W. S. Kuniczak translation. Curtain goes so far back that he was a friend of President Theodore Roosevelt. I don't know when Kuniczak translated the work but he died in 2000, so much more recent. Both are supposed to be good translations but Curtain's language is supposed to be dated. Kuniczak I think was Polish himself, was also a novelist, and translated a number of Sienkiewicz's works. Kuniczak is probably the one to get, but I too got the Curtain translation. It was cheap! But despite the language it is supposed to be a faithful translation.  It has survived a long time.

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Chapters 1 thru 6

Summary

We meet Petronius, an older aristocrat, awakening to the start of the novel, benumbed after having spent the previous night at one of Nero’s feasts.  After getting a message and a bath, his young nephew, Marcus Vinicius arrives, recently returned from Asia Minor and joins him in the bath.  They talk about their mutual travels and assignments, the recent politics, and common acquaintances.  They also talk about life and war and writing.  When Petronius casually mentions Aulus Plautius, Vinicius tells of having stayed at Aulus’s home when he dislocated his arm and was nursed by a most beautiful young slave named Lygia, with whom he had fallen in love.  Vinicius tells the story of how the Emperor Claudius in conquest of the Lygians had taken the girl, who was the Lygean King’s daughter as a political hostage and through several transactions wound up with Pomponia Graecina, the wife of Aulus Plautius, where Vinicius met her.  He expresses his desire to have Lygia and implores Petronius to get Aulus to give her to him.

The two set out to the house of Aulus Plautius.  On the way, Vinicius tells Petronius of his two meetings with Lygia.  They travel through the heart of Rome where the city comes to life with activity.  They stop at a book-shop, and Petronius purchases a book, Satyricon, and gifts it to Vinicius.  Petronius tells him he is the author, but it is a secret and to not tell anyone.  The two arrive at Aulus’s house and are let in.  Aulus was a general under the Emperor Claudius in the conquest of Britain, and the three men have a discussion.  They come to where his little child Aulus and Lygia are playing and then come to Plautius’s wife Pomponia in the garden.  Pomponia is dressed in black mourning.  When Lygia joins them, Vinicius quotes a love verse from Homer, and Lygia to everyone’s surprise knows and speaks the corresponding verse.  She runs off, but Vinicius follows and woos her and asks her to live with him in Sicily.  Meanwhile Petronius and Pomponia are discussing the gods when Pomponia tells him she only believes in one almighty God.

On the way home, Petronius pondered the philosophic implications of Pamponia’s one God.  He speaks of this to Vinicius but Vinicius is focused solely on Lygia.  He says he is completely captivated by her and must marry her.  Petronius tries to calm him, and finally tells him he has a plan that if it works she will wind up in Vinicius’ house.

That evening Petronius goes to have a confidential conversation with Nero.  In a few days a squad of praetorian soldiers headed by a centurion show up in Aulus’ house proclaiming that the emperor commands to take Lygia to his household since she is an offered hostage from the Lygian king.  The household is in tears.  All these years at the Aulus’ household, Lygia had become a daughter to Aulus and Pomponia.  But despite the heartbreak, tears, and anger, Lygia must go.  Lygia is consoled that she can take her retinue that came with her from Lygia, and who share her religion.  Aulus promises he will speak to the emperor to reverse this.

But Nero denies Aulus a visit, and so Aulus goes to Seneca for assistance.  Seneca laughs that he could have any sway over Nero, and that it might actually be counterproductive and Nero deny him in spite.  They come to the conclusion that Petronius had put up Nero to taking Lygia.  Aulus then goes to Vinicius’ home and tells him that Lygia has been taken away.  This enrages Vinicius because he had understood the plan to be that Petronius would have her sent to his house, not the emperor’s. 

Vinicius rushes to Petronius’s home in anger ready to exact violence.  He believes that Petronius has betrayed him to keep Lygia for himself.  Petronius stops him with his own strength but as Vinicius calms down, Petronius explains that this was part of his plan.  It required Lygia to spend some time at the Emperor’s home because Lygia is technically a political hostage, and therefore it required a justification to take her from Aulus.  In time Nero will authorizes her to go to Vinicius’ home.  Vinicius is mollified and asks for forgiveness.

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Kerstin Commented:

Vinicius is besotted, no question about it. We normally don't get such unfiltered declarations of love. I find it quite amusing. Here is the young buck not knowing where his head stands!

 

Petronius is a seasoned courtier. He knows how precariously his life hangs in the balance given Nero's volatile temper. He has to outsmart him given Lygia's complicated status. He also has no compunction to let the ends justify the means.

 

Here is a description and graphics of how a Roman house looked like.

https://roman-empire.net/society/the-roman-house/

 

Years ago there was a traveling exhibit on Roman life here in Kansas City, and they had rebuilt an atrium with the pool in the middle, etc. It was fascinating

Galicius Comment:

I was rather impressed by how well-grounded Sienkiewicz seemed in the ancient Roman world; dare I say its “culture.” I looked for his sources on the topography and orientation. The Wikipedia information is impressive. I found additional information in Literatura Polska (Literatura Polska, #2) by Julian Krzyżanowski |(Encyclopedic Guide to Polish Literature, Vol. II N-Z) Goodreads which lists some sources Sienkiewicz used: Roman historians Tacitus (C. 56-c.120) and Suetonius (c. 69-c.122). He used 19th Century historians such a E. Renan’s “Antichrist” (1873, A. Giraud, “Flavieau ou de Rome desert” (1835), Ignacy Kraszewski, “Rzym za Nerona” (Rome During Nero” (1866) and Krasinski „Irydion”. The painter Henryk Siemiradzki was his friend. Sienkiewicz admired the painting shown on the Wikipedia page on “Quo Vadis.”

 

Sienkiewicz had the idea about the Lygians from W. Ketrzynski who thought that they were people living between the Oder and Vistula rivers. This was supported also by studies of K. Murawski.

My Reply to Galicius:

I am impressed too Galicius on how Sienkiewicz captures the Roman mind. I have read that he spent a lot of time learning the culture and psychology. I think he did a superb job!

My Comment:

So what is interesting is that I think Sienkiewicz is playing with Greco-Roman stoicism, and how Vinicius is the very opposite in contrast to Petronius and Aulus who hold to that model much better. Sienkiewicz goes out of his way to highlight Vinicius' over abundant emotion and lack of control. Vinicius is a total failure to hold up this Roman ideal. How this figures in the novel I don't think we've seen yet.

Joseph’s Reply:

There's certainly some play with Stoicism, but I think Sienkiewicz is setting up kind of a three-way thing. You have Vinicius who is ruled by his emotions and desires, Petronius who is so logical as to be coldly ruthless, and the as yet mysterious Christians Pomponia and Lygia. Pitted against these is the overwhelming figure of Nero and his unpredictability so we may see a deep dive into how each character reacts when the winds shift, as it were.

My Reply to Joseph:

I should correct myself. Above I said that Petronius was a stoic like Aulus. I think that is incorrect. He enjoys his life well but he does it with a certain moderation. As pointed out in the summary, Petronius is the actual author of the ancient Roman novel the Satyricon. I'm not sure why Sienkiewicz placed in such a prominent position the author of a Roman decadent satire, but there has to reason. Are the views of the Satyricon endowed to Petronius? I don't know. I have not read the Satyricon. Petronius however strikes me more of an Epicurean, one who enjoys life without the extremes of hedonism but are typically cynical and godless and amoral.

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Excerpt from Chapter Two.  Petronius and Vinicius are walking through Rome to go to Aulus’s house.  Sienkiewicz marvelously captures the hustle and bustle of the Roman streets.

 

From the Vicus Apollinis they turned to the Boarium, and then entered the Forum Romanum, where on clear days, before sunset, crowds of idle people assembled to stroll among the columns, to tell and hear news, to see noted people borne past in litters, and finally to look in at the jewellery-shops, the book-shops, the arches where coin was changed, shops for silk, bronze, and all other articles with which the buildings covering that part of the market placed opposite the Capitol were filled.

 

One-half of the Forum, immediately under the rock of the Capitol, was buried already in shade; but the columns of the temples, placed higher, seemed golden in the sunshine and the blue. Those lying lower cast lengthened shadows on marble slabs. The place was so filled with columns everywhere that the eye was lost in them as in a forest.

 

Those buildings and columns seemed huddled together. They towered some above others, they stretched toward the right and the left, they climbed toward the height, and they clung to the wall of the Capitol, or some of them clung to others, like greater and smaller, thicker and thinner, white or gold colored tree-trunks, now blooming under architraves, flowers of the acanthus, now surrounded with Ionic corners, now finished with a simple Doric quadrangle. Above that forest gleamed colored triglyphs; from tympans stood forth the sculptured forms of gods; from the summits winged golden quadrigæ seemed ready to fly away through space into the blue dome, fixed serenely above that crowded place of temples. Through the middle of the market and along the edges of it flowed a river of people; crowds passed under the arches of the basilica of Julius Cæsar; crowds were sitting on the steps of Castor and Pollux, or walking around the temple of Vesta, resembling on that great marble background many-colored swarms of butterflies or beetles. Down immense steps, from the side of the temple on the Capitol dedicated to Jupiter Optimus Maximus, came new waves; at the rostra people listened to chance orators; in one place and another rose the shouts of hawkers selling fruit, wine, or water mixed with fig-juice; of tricksters; of venders of marvellous medicines; of soothsayers; of discoverers of hidden treasures; of interpreters of dreams. Here and there, in the tumult of conversations and cries, were mingled sounds of the Egyptian sistra, of the sambuké, or of Grecian flutes. Here and there the sick, the pious, or the afflicted were bearing offerings to the temples. In the midst of the people, on the stone flags, gathered flocks of doves, eager for the grain given them, and like movable many-colored and dark spots, now rising for a moment with a loud sound of wings, now dropping down again to places left vacant by people. From time to time the crowds opened before litters in which were visible the affected faces of women, or the heads of senators and knights, with features, as it were, rigid and exhausted from living. The many-tongued population repeated aloud their names, with the addition of some term of praise or ridicule. Among the unordered groups pushed from time to time, advancing with measured tread, parties of soldiers, or watchers, preserving order on the streets. Around about, the Greek language was heard as often as Latin.