The Ides of March: A Novel [Paperback]

Thornton Wilder (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 16, 2003

Drawing on such unique sources as Thornton Wilder's unpublished letters, journals, and selections from the extensive annotations Wilder made years later in the margins of the book, Tappan Wilder's Afterword adds a special dimension to the reissue of this internationally acclaimed novel.

The Ides of March, first published in 1948, is a brilliant epistolary novel set in Julius Caesar's Rome. Thornton Wilder called it "a fantasia on certain events and persons of the last days of the Roman republic." Through vividly imagined letters and documents, Wilder brings to life a dramatic period of world history and one of history's most magnetic, elusive personalities.

In this inventive narrative, the Caesar of history becomes Caesar the human being. Wilder also resurrects the controversial figures surrounding Caesar -- Cleopatra, Catullus, Cicero, and others. All Rome comes crowding through these pages -- the Rome of villas and slums, beautiful women and brawling youths, spies and assassins.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Latin (translation) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Thornton Wilder (1897–1975) was an accomplished novelist and playwright whose works explore the connection between the commonplace and the cosmic dimensions of human experience. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1928 for The Bridge of San Luis Rey, the second of his seven novels, and received the Pulitzer Prize in Drama for Our Town in 1938 and The Skin of Our Teeth in 1943. Wilder's hit play The Matchmaker was adapted as the musical Hello, Dolly! His work is widely read and produced around the world to this day, and his screenplay for Alfred Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt (1943) remains a classic psycho-thriller. Wilder's many honors include the Gold Medal for Fiction of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Harper Perennial; First Edition edition (September 16, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060088907
• ISBN-13: 978-0060088903
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #94,881 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Thornton Wilder (1897–1975) is an accomplished novelist and playwright whose works, exploring the connection between the commonplace and cosmic dimensions of human experience, continue to be read and produced around the world. His Bridge of San Luis Rey, one of seven novels, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1928, as did two of his four full-length dramas, Our Town (1938) and The Skin of Our Teeth (1943). Wilder's Matchmaker was adapted as the musical Hello, Dolly! He also enjoyed enormous success with many other forms of the written and spoken word, among them teaching, acting, opera, and film. His screenplay for Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt (1943) remains a classic psychological thriller to this day. Wilder's many honors include the Gold Medal for Fiction from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the National Book Committee's Medal for Literature.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Drama!! August 11, 2000

By Greg Feirman

Format:Hardcover

I really liked Thornton Wilder's "The Ides of March" because of it's drama and it's philosophical content. The first thing to note is the great structure of the book which makes it very dramatic. The book is structured into four separate parts and each parts leads up to a scene that is anticipated throughout the part. For part I, it is the dinner at Clodia and Clodius Pulcher's; for part II, it is the reception at Cleopatra's; for part III, it is the profanation of the mysteries of the goddess by clodia pulcher and her brother; and for part IV, it is Caesar's assasination. From the very start of each part, Wilder whets your appetite for how the climactic event is going to go and I was so anxious to find out what happened, which kept me turning the pages. The second thing I want to mention is the great amount of thought provoking philosophical content in this concise, 246 page novel. There is alot of reflection in Caesar's journal about the rational grounds for religion (a belief in God or the Gods), there is a passage on living one's life with the knowledge that one will die one day, and stuff about love and relationships. Also, there is alot of character analysis, analyzing Caesar's character, contrasting it to Cicero's and Junius Brutus's and others. The fact that Caesar and these others are these famous historical figures from ancient rome tinges it all with that feeling that one is gaining an education about the roots of Western Civilization, in touch with the classics. My favorite parts are probably the letters of Caesar to his friend Lucius Mamillius Turrinus because of the great philosophical content and also the letters at the end of each section where some other character will describe in a long letter what happened at the climactic event. I heartily recommend this book because of the great drama and philosophical content. I've read other books set in the ancient past, such as Mary Renault's "The Last of the Wine", set in ancient Greece during the Peloponessian War, but I like this one better because there is more drama, more excitement, as well as more philosophical content, more real wisdom about life. And it does all this in 246 pages compared to around 430 for Renault's book. Any fans of this book who have recommendations for me please e-mail me! Greg Feirman

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Gripping treatment of the last year of Julius Caeser's life. December 8, 1997

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

This is the perfect book for adolscents whom you want to interest in history. Told in the form of letters from some of Rome's most famous citizens, including Mark Antony, Cleopatra, Julius Caeser himself and Catullus, the poet, the book is divided into four parts, each of which starts earlier and ends later than the previous section. The letter format not only allows the characters to ruminate on the meaning of their lives--and some big issues as well, such as religion and destiny--but it also allows Wilder to show an event from multiple perspectives, a technique he uses well to deepen the complexity of events over the course of the book. Caeser may be the worst writer in the book. He is given to repeating phrases for lyrical effect in a way that can be a little cloying, but on the whole he is viewed a little admiringly to be fashionable in our revisionist times. Wilder's women are strong as usual, and the story is always gripping. It's amazing to me that this book is out of print.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A unique historical novel of the last year of Julis Caesar March 25, 2004

By gac1003

Format:Paperback

I think most people know the story of Julius Caesar's death: stabbed 23 times on March 15th during a session of the Senate. What Thornton Wilder has done with his novel is to give the reader a glimpse in to the human side of Caesar, through journal entries and correspondence from him and those surrounding him. We learn of the statesman, who tries his best to govern his people; of his "divinity" and his tolerance of the belief in gods and goddesses; of the family man living in a tepid marriage with his wife Pompeia; and of his attraction to intellectuals, whether if be the poet Catullus, whose poetry he highly regards even if it mocks him, and the beautfiul Egyptian Queen Cleopatra, whom he considers almost an equal in terms of ability to rule. Wilder also lets us in on public opinion concerning the Dictator, as Caesar was also known, through intercepted correspondence of Clodia Pulcher and others. Caesar becomes more of a human figure in the hands of Wilder. He has his foibles and his share of indecisions, just like any other person. He also tries to do what he believes to be the right thing in terms of treating others. A unique historical novel.