The Day Commodus Killed a Rhino: Understanding the Roman Games by Jerry Toner

Abstract

BOOK REVIEWS/COMPTES RENDUS 203 The Day Commodus Killed a Rhino: Understanding the Roman Games. By Jerry Toner. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. 2014. Pp. 136. Toner's book is one of the inaugural volumes in Johns Hopkins’s “Witness to Ancient History” series,1 the premise of which is to take a specific day in ancient history, survey the events that led up to it, the day itself, and its effects in subsequent history. In this specific work, Toner organizes the material with a Prologue, “The Rhino Dies,” on the actual killing and six chapters that provide essentially ever-expanding context: Chapter One, “Commodus’s Great Games”; Chapter Two, “When in Commodiana”; Chapter Three, “An Emperor Loves His People”; Chapter Four, “Feeding the Monster”; Chapter Five, “Win the Crowd”; Chapter Six, “How to Be a Roman”; and an Epilogue, “Fighting Back,” on Christian martyrdom and resistance to the games. This is not a scholarly account, nor is it intended to be. The only notes are references to primary sources and they range in number from thirty-five in Chapter Six to none for Chapter Two, which really could benefit from some. The tone of the writing is casual and engaging, more like a written lecture script than an academic book. For example, in Chapter Two, referring to the renaming of months, Toner writes “These measures came into effect from July, sorry, Aurelius, a.d. 192” (28). Toner also writes in the first person singular, clearly distinguishing his opinions and conclusions from ancient judgments in a style that is effective and reminiscent of Lily Ross Taylor’s clear, straightforward prose.2 The book is brief, only 136 pages long including notes and index, and designed deliberately for educating undergraduates, initial graduate students, non-specialists in the field, or interested non-professionals. Not to reveal the ending too early, it does this very well. It provides an excellent discussion of the intersection between the games and politics in ancient Rome based on the example of Commodus and his games of a.d. 192. The Prologue serves effectively to set the stage of the games of a.d. 192, the specific event of the rhino hunt (Toner refers casually throughout to the “rhino”), the character of Commodus, and the eyewitness testimony of Cassius Dio. It also establishes the premise of the book and its attempt to “understand the importance of the games within a wider social context and explain the various different attributes that enabled them to play such a role” (5). Chapter One provides a useful, vivid account of how a set of games was arranged, how it was organized and presented during the course of a day’s events, and how it was paid for. The details of the games are, however, filled out with material from other contexts, in some cases very distant times and places, such as first-century a.d. North African games. I found this fictionalizing of the games useful and even necessary, but also somewhat misleading, since the acknowledgment of this technique is only found at the back of the book under “Suggested Further Reading.” The explanation of this method should have been given in the Prologue. Chapter Two provides a context for the games during the reign of Commodus, outlining the emperor’s parentage (real and rumored), propaganda programs, and tumultuous relationship with the Senate, which is critical given Toner’s reliance on Cassius Dio as a source. The chapter, however, lacks any references to the primary sources. Chapter 1 Since being assigned this review, I have signed a contract to write a book in this same series. As a result this review will focus on this specific volume and not the concept of the series as a whole. 2 Lily Ross Taylor, Party Politics in the Age of Caesar (Berkeley 1949). 204 PHOENIX Three explores the interactions between the emperor and the people at the games, starting with examples from Commodus’ games, but providing historical comparanda as well, both successful interactions between the emperor and spectators as well as some notable failures. In addition to the social role of the games, Toner outlines well the political role in giving the crowd a voice...