ABSTRACT
This chapter outlines Sallust’s method of “analogical historiography,” through which Sallust presents his critique of contemporary politics and society via his portrayal of the past. While allusion is a ubiquitous part of Roman literary discourse, this chapter suggests that Sallust is especially drawn to this method for two main reasons. First, historical allusion asks the reader to engage with the text on multiple levels, and to parse past from present; it thus encourages the sort of critical interrogation required for life under a regime that views the “truth” as flexible and subordinate to its interest in shaping its own image. Second, as a form of literary repetition, allusion allows Sallust to confront the repetitive nature of civil war and, possibly, to address the individual and collective trauma left in its wake.
