The Memoirs of Cleopatra Book Review
How Julius Caesar & Marcus Antony Became Lovers of the Egypt Queen
Mar 5, 2009
Cleopatra is often portrayed as the amoral seductress whose ambition is as impenetrable as her confidence. Historically, Cleopatra’s interference in Roman politics casts her as a villain who indulges her feminine wiles at Rome's expense. American novelist Margaret George relinquishes this stereotype and conceives a warm-blooded Cleopatra with human desires, fears and charms. This realist approach enhances The Memoirs of Cleopatra and makes this a gripping, enjoyable read, even for a thousand-page novel.
The Memoirs of Cleopatra - a Sensuous Read
Cleopatra's redeeming qualities are revealed from the start, in a note that sets a sacred tone. Cleopatra humbly thanks goddess Isis - Ancient Egypt’s ideal mother and wife - and asks for judgment. The Memoirs of Cleopatra begins with gentle childhood recollections: of Cleopatra losing her mother in a drowning incident. Lightly, with all her senses, young Cleopatra recounts how the “sloshing of the water...makes a blanket of sound”, describing her ambivalent relationship with the Nile that carries through the novel.
Margaret George revives Cleopatra beautifully, with delicate balance between sensory detail, momentum and storytelling. When Cleopatra lingers on the details of her costume, her pride emanates from Egypt rather than her own looks. In fact, a downtrodden Cleopatra sometimes wonders if her looks are too ordinary to inspire Roman loyalty. Her sister Arsinoe, in contrast, nearly gets away with treason using her angelic looks, but is eventually put to death.
Cleopatra’s Attraction to Power
Cleopatra is attracted to power, but Margaret George emphasizes this as a quality of survival, not whim. When Cleopatra's half-brother Ptolemy usurps the throne, she hides in a rug brought to Julius Caesar, to seek his help. There is continual emphasis that the Ptolemies are a treacherous lineage, and siblings are shockingly done away with. Cruelty produces the tension which is eased by the sexual affair between Cleopatra and Caesar. Yet in these encounters, neither Caesar nor Cleopatra are fully in control. Caesar, described as “lean and tanned”, with small hands and a “powerful, lithe frame”, is the famous Roman whose vibrant energy translates to virility.
What Makes Cleopatra an Icon
What makes The Memoirs of Cleopatra a fascinating read is how Cleopatra’s inner dialogue compares with her official performance. To hold oneself with dignity when troubles grind away inside, denotes great discipline and self-control. Readers of The Memoirs of Cleopatra will no doubt admire the transformation of a free-spirit to the most powerful woman in the world. Cleopatra’s necessary restraint on her passionate nature is heartbreaking: “Make me beautiful enough to love” she yearns. Tragically, she loses Caesar in the infamous murder, which is terrifyingly played out in this novel.
Antony and Cleopatra
Margaret George fashions other characters with loving attention, as extensions of Cleopatra. Graceful Charmian and Iras are Cleopatra's non-political alter-egos; Mardian and Olympus symbolize her loyalty; and indecisive Marc Antony reveals her resoluteness. The novel moves between Alexandria and Rome, contrasting the changeable, fertile Nile with blood-soaked, hypocritical Rome. Marcus Antony, the second great Roman loved by Cleopatra, wavers between both states to his demise. Cleopatra is bedazzled by Julius Caesar, but nurses Dionysian Marc Antony like a son, directing him in war. Marc Antony is depicted as handsome, generous and hearty to a fault. The novel follows her great tussle with Octavian, Caesar’s tenacious, cunning nephew, who eventually undoes the Egyptian throne. But not without a fierce fight.
Well-researched by Margaret George
Margaret George’s scrupulous research is apparent, but more laudable is her instinct for Cleopatra’s choices and actions. Her familiarity with Cleopatra is revealed in an interview: “I lived with Cleopatra for a long time" admits Margaret George.
Source:
[1] Margaret George: Remembering Cleopatra. Linda Richards, January Magazine.
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