Conspiring against the State? Livy’s account of the Bacchanalia of 186 BCE used as a warning against decadence and decay in 1st century BCE Rome

Abstract

Livy’s account of the Bacchanalia of 186 BCE has been extensively discussed by scholars in the past. Earlier scholars have focused on whether Livy described an actual conspiracy against the state or rather a crisis in 1st century BCE Rome. When analysing Livy’s account within the field of imagological studies, valuable new insights will become available. It will be shown that in writing his account of the Bacchic festival, Livy wanted to warn his readers of the dangers of indecent behaviour – not just on an individual level, but also for the Roman state. If too many people (especially young eques who were trained for political office) were led astray, this would have unforeseeable consequences. Finally, it will be shown that we are not simply dealing with a conspiracy or a crisis, but rather a scenario showing how a (party fictional) conspiracy against decent moral behaviour could have led to a crisis in the state.

Keywords

• Livy
• Bacchanalia
• Senatus consultum de Bacchanalibus
• senatorial reforms of 186 BCE
• imagology