Setting Up the Tyrant in Suetonius' Life of Nero

Abstract

Following a well-established biographical pattern, Suetonius’ Life of Nero is patently divided up into two sections, respectively treating the emperor’s virtutes and vitia. The paper argues that the first, allegedly positive part on the good aspects of Nero’s reign is not to be seen as a fully neutral piece of narrative. On the contrary, it contains a series of hints and details whose function is that of foreshadowing the following negative section by means of anticipating words and contexts in which Nero’s degenerate character will come to the foreground.