The Empire of the Self: Self-Command and Political Speech in Seneca and Petronius

4. Political Speech in De clementia

chapter four Political Speech in De clementia In the history of social and political thought, it is doubtful that there are two more opposed texts than the American Declaration of Independence and Seneca ’s De clementia. Based on Enlightenment thought, the Declaration was written and signed by earnest citizen-soldiers in order to cast off despotism and establish a sovereign republic in the New World. De clementia, on the other hand, is full of rhetorical tropes and technical discussions of Stoic theory. Written by the “imperial voice” for the young emperor of Rome, this text’s forerunners are the (largely lost) Hellenistic kingship treatises, or “mirrors for princes.”1 It praises that most unrepublican of virtues, mercy.2 Seneca does not base Nero’s authority to rule on any constitutional powers or senatorial or popular mandate (1.19.1). Rather, he is the gods’ choice, as Seneca has Nero declare to himself (1.1.2). He equates the principate with kingship (1.3.3, 1.4.3).3 Seneca dispels any possibility of return to republicanism by stating that autocracy did not begin with Augustus but was already a political reality under Julius Caesar (1.4.3). Despite these vast differences between the two texts, two important points of contact can be noted. First, both seek to differentiate a king from a tyrant.4 The Declaration sets out to prove that this 118 Soul-Revealing Speech dreaded transition has already occurred in the case of King George III. Seneca is trying to keep it from happening to Nero. Second, as evidence of the shift from kingship to tyranny, both texts focus on the ruler’s relationship to the courts of law.5 In addition, the populace, when it perceives the ruler’s abuses of the judicial system, will be driven to violent rebellion against the tyrant. However intriguing the influence of monarchical thought on republican ideas may be, my reason for briefly bringing the Declaration of Independence and De clementia together is to highlight the crucial role of judgment of both kings and subjects in determining the specific nature of autocracy.6 The primary goal of De clementia is the fashioning of a merciful autocrat, one who willingly submits to virtue and reason and from this “noble servitude ” (1.8.1) gains “freedom of judgment” (2.7.3). This treatise does not simply focus on Nero, however. Another important aspect is the shaping of the populace ’s capacity for critical judgment of Nero in order to determine whether he is a king or a tyrant. Seneca frequently makes use of the body-soul metaphor to define the relationship between Nero and his subjects (e.g., 1.5.1).7 A major problem that Seneca tackles is how to get Nero, who is the soul of the state, to reveal his soul and have it properly interpreted and obeyed by the body politic. Mirroring the constitution of a human being on a macrolevel, the political body and the imperial soul are intertwined and interdependent. This interdependence can have both positive and negative consequences. As Seneca notes in book 2, ideally Nero’s merciful soul will diffuse itself and shape the body of the state (2.2.1). On the other hand, if Nero is tyrannical, if he does not care for his soul, then the entirety will collapse, or the body will rebel against the soul. Thus, Seneca endeavors to shape not only the soul of the empire but also the body of the empire so that the two can work harmoniously. In order to do so, Seneca attempts in De clementia to make both the emperor and his subjects experts in rendering judgments and interpreting appearances.8 The need to render proper judgments exists on several levels. Seneca must make sure that Nero is able to render merciful judgments in the courtroom and discern the irredeemably corrupt and criminal from those worthy of clemency. In addition , Nero must learn how to differentiate between virtue and vice and between a king and a tyrant. The populace must also be able to judge Nero correctly . If he is perceived to be a tyrant, then the people will revolt. Thus, De clementia must not only fashion a merciful princeps who acts with full understanding of this virtue but also enable Nero to reveal himself properly to the wider public so that they are not deceived by the appearances of his actions. [3.137.161.222] Project MUSE (2024-04-25 16:25 GMT...