Sunday, October 19, 2008

And Now for Something Completely Different

One of my favorite works of literature is I Claudius and the sequel, Claudius the God. In I Claudius, Robert Graves has Augustus pondering this upon learning that the Senate has voted to make him a god:

The Senate voted today to make me a god in Palmyra. There will be a little statue to me in the temple and people will bring offerings to me, ask me to bring rain or cure their father's gout. Tell me, Livia. If I'm a god, even in Palymra, how do I cure gout?

Great question!

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