New Books Network Caillan Davenport, "Behind Caesar's Back: Rumor, Gossip, and the Making of the Roman Emperors" (Yale UP, 2026)
Feb 10, 2026
Caillan Davenport, Roman historian at the Australian National University and author of Behind Caesar's Back, explores how rumor and gossip shaped perceptions of emperors. He discusses sources like graffiti and letters. Conversations cover how news traveled, when rumors sparked protests, and gossip about sex, succession, impostors, and imperial responses.
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Gossip Shapes The Idea Of The Emperor
- Romans recycled the same salacious stories across different emperors, revealing a shared idea of 'the emperor' rather than unique biographies.
- Caillan Davenport argues gossip reveals how Romans conceived imperial power and expectations.
Rumours Versus Gossip Defined
- Rumours are sense-making when official information is absent or distrusted, while gossip evaluates personal character.
- This distinction helps decode why different stories spread and what they reveal about social norms.
Use Diverse Sources To Recover Oral Talk
- Combine letters, graffiti, sermons, and histories to reconstruct ancient oral discourse instead of relying on one source type.
- Treat historians' reports and street chants as preserved oral fragments to trace rumours and gossip.
