Marcus Aurelius: Marcus Aurelius

"Pat Buchanan once said that George W. Bush was no Marcus Aurelius, while Bill Clinton claimed that he read and reread Aurelius' Meditations as president. McLynn, author of biographies of figures from Napoleon to Jung, argues that the emperor and Stoic philosopher satisfies a thirst for guidance that modern philosophers have largely abandoned. But McLynn fails to make his case in a book that veers between biography and a defense of an emperor more famous for his words than for his actions. Drawing on Aurelius' Meditations, letters with his tutor and other ancient sources of disputed authenticity, McLynn ploddingly narrates Aurelius' rise to emperor in 161 C.E. — a role to which he was, McLynn acknowledges, temperamentally unsuited — and the challenges he faced, mostly unsuccessfully, during his 19-year reign. Attempting to protect the Roman Empire from the German barbarians, for example, he gave land to these foreign tribes. This strategy backfired, creating new economic and social divisions. Marcus Aurelius emerges from McLynn's biography as a disappointing political figure who could do nothing to unite the Roman Empire in its waning days and who remains most memorable for his aphorisms, such as 'By a tranquil mind I mean a well-ordered one.' 8 pages of b&w photos. (Sept.)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

This is a biography of Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius (121-180), the last of Machiavelli's "Five Good Emperors" and an important Stoic philosopher, whose Meditations remains one of the most widely read works of the classical age. The volume combines intellectual and political biography and draws a portrait of a man of consummate military, political, and intellectual talent whose relevance remains as vital as ever. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Critically acclaimed author McLynn pens this masterful and long-overdue biography of Marcus Aurelius, whose life as a philosopher, soldier, and emperor still resonates with contemporary relevance. b&w photographs throughout.