Sulla - personality

[dianamt54]

What drew me to this topic is, I am a psychiatric nurse by profession, and I have often thought that Caesar showed many characteristics of a person with a personality disorder (in other words, psychopath), of the Narcissistic type. In my experience, such people (ancient AND modern) are often highly intelligent, attractive, highly motivated and have great charisma. They also have great faith in their own abilities, enjoy being the centre of attention, are good at criticising but are unable to accept criticism, and are very good at 'holding court' to an audience. They broadcast their own successes, but are oblivious to the fact that their successes are due to the contribution or sacrifice of other individuals.

What do think of Sulla?

[M. Porcius Cato]

What drew me to this topic is, I am a psychiatric nurse by profession, and I have often thought that Caesar showed many characteristics of a person with a personality disorder (in other words, psychopath), of the Narcissistic type. In my experience, such people (ancient AND modern) are often highly intelligent, attractive, highly motivated and have great charisma. They also have great faith in their own abilities, enjoy being the centre of attention, are good at criticising but are unable to accept criticism, and are very good at 'holding court' to an audience. They broadcast their own successes, but are oblivious to the fact that their successes are due to the contribution or sacrifice of other individuals.

What do think of Sulla?

 

Perhaps this could be a thread unto itself?

[dianamt54]

What drew me to this topic is, I am a psychiatric nurse by profession, and I have often thought that Caesar showed many characteristics of a person with a personality disorder (in other words, psychopath), of the Narcissistic type. In my experience, such people (ancient AND modern) are often highly intelligent, attractive, highly motivated and have great charisma. They also have great faith in their own abilities, enjoy being the centre of attention, are good at criticising but are unable to accept criticism, and are very good at 'holding court' to an audience. They broadcast their own successes, but are oblivious to the fact that their successes are due to the contribution or sacrifice of other individuals.

I didn't a chance to expand last night, but if Caesar showed characteristics of a personality disorder, than Sulla must have something.

Multiple personality disorder? Schizophrena? He was a genius, but I guess all those years of war, wine and woman, he just snapped.

What do you think?

[Northern Neil]

I didn't a chance to expand last night, but if Caesar showed characteristics of a personality disorder, than Sulla must have something.

Multiple personality disorder? Schizophrena? He was a genius, but I guess all those years of war, wine and woman, he just snapped.

What do you think?

When I referred to Caesar with respect to a personality disorder I was, of course, aware that this personality disorder classification is modern in origin, and that people with this disorder - in our time and in our society- can be very destructive people. The personality disorder type I ascribed to Caesar is a convenient label whose parameters roughly define Caesar's personality, in as much as ancient writings can be used to guage his personality at all. However, I am aware that in the time and circumstances Caesar lived, these same personality traits may not have been seen to be negative or destructive at all - and if they were, then the sentiment was political, rather than medical / psychological. For what its worth, I believe Caesar was an immense big -head (Narcissistic personality disorder, if you like) who caused a lot of inconvenience and suffering to a great many people to feather his own nest. He also was instrumental in forging the world we live in, and wrote books which we can still read today.

 

I am not a psychiatrist, merely a practitioner of psychiatric nursing so I do not have much academic weight to throw behind my hypothesis regarding Caesar's personality. I know very little about Sulla, and I will endeavour to make good this knowledge deficit. From what I have read in Tom Holland's 'Rubicon' he seems, at first glance, to be more of a Robert Maxwell / Rupert Murdoch character, rather than a psychopath. In otherwords, a ruthless power - mad magnate with money to back up his actions. But unlike Caesar, I believe he was fully aware of his motives, in touch with his ordinary humanity and also aware of his limitations - altogether a more rational person than Caesar by far.

[cornelius_sulla]

One of the things that has always intrigued me about Sulla is that he had Rome by the short and curlies, but walked away. I've always thought that this was due to his innate sense of self interest. Look what happened to Caesar, Emperor in all but name. Perhaps it is closer to the mark to think of Sulla as incredibly sane and very canny.

Another thing that intrigues me about the man is that even by writers who were writing closer to his time, (and ever since) he has been profiled as a Villain, capital V. In a era with markedly different ideas on the nature of good and bad men, this is a notably infamous achievement. He has been cast as one of 'The Bad Men' of history.

You aren't many (any?) of those in any era who didn't have with a few mental issues.

[M. Porcius Cato]

Another thing that intrigues me about the man is that even by writers who were writing closer to his time, (and ever since) he has been profiled as a Villain, capital V. In a era with markedly different ideas on the nature of good and bad men, this is a notably infamous achievement. He has been cast as one of 'The Bad Men' of history.

 

Certainly your characterization is supported by what we hear from Cicero's speeches and by the fact that Sulla's own former supporters rushed to undo his legislation. Still, I wonder whether those who had been victimized by Cinna and Marius felt the same way.

[dianamt54]

Another thing that intrigues me about the man is that even by writers who were writing closer to his time, (and ever since) he has been profiled as a Villain, capital V. In a era with markedly different ideas on the nature of good and bad men, this is a notably infamous achievement. He has been cast as one of 'The Bad Men' of history.

 

Certainly your characterization is supported by what we hear from Cicero's speeches and by the fact that Sulla's own former supporters rushed to undo his legislation. Still, I wonder whether those who had been victimized by Cinna and Marius felt the same way.

Between the war between Sulla and Marius, the killings by Cinna and Marius, and then Sulla's reign of Terror, I am amazed any one was left in Rome. Didn't all these killings deplete Rome of senators, their sons and half of the patricians?

[M. Porcius Cato]

Between the war between Sulla and Marius, the killings by Cinna and Marius, and then Sulla's reign of Terror, I am amazed any one was left in Rome. Didn't all these killings deplete Rome of senators, their sons and half of the patricians?

 

I'm not sure about the demographics of patricians, but Sulla enlarged the senate with an unprecedented number of new men.