Cette thèse présente les résultats de l’analyse philologique, codicologique, paléographique, linguistique, de la décoration et de l’illustration de quatre manuscrits des Faits des Romains copiés en Italie à la fin du XIIIe siècle, c’est-à-dire Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, fr. 726 et fr. 23082, Città del Vaticano, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Vat. lat. 4792 et le fragment Saumur, Médiathèque, 67. L’étude de ces témoins vise à comprendre les intentions des concepteurs de ces recueils, à en reconstruire les phases de production et à relever les spécificités culturelles des opérations de mise en recueil des textes. Pour ce faire, la première partie du présent travail s’intéresse à retracer l’origine et le rayonnement de deux courts textes inédits en prose française, dont ces manuscrits sont les exemplaires conservés les plus anciens. Il s’agit de la Chronique des empereurs d’Octavien à Frédéric II, traduction partielle du Chronicon pontificum et imperatorum Romanorum de Gilbert, et de la Chronologie abrégée depuis Adam jusqu’en 1239, retombée ultime de la tradition latine des annales mineures normandes. L’étude de la tradition de ces deux textes français aboutit à la publication de leur édition critique et permet de préciser les caractéristiques de leur réception en Italie. Transcrites après le récit de la vie de Jules César contenu dans les Faits des Romains, la Chronique et la Chronologie proposent au lecteur un aperçu de la postérité du pouvoir impérial insérée dans une perspective chrétienne. L’examen global des quatre manuscrits des Faits des Romains éclaire les modalités de diffusion de l’œuvre et permet de retracer la postérité de la figure de César dans les produits littéraires et historiques en langue vernaculaire du XIIIe à XVe siècle. La production des quatre manuscrits des Faits des Romains avait été attribuée à des professionnels de livres provenant de Pise et détenus dans les prisons de Gênes à la fin du XIIIe siècle. Les données issues de la présente étude confirment cette hypothèse pour un seul exemplaire (BnF, fr. 726) et laissent le doute sur le fragment, tandis que les deux autres copies ne présentent pas des traces claires du travail des Pisans. Les exemplaires des Faits des Romains dont cette recherche arrive à présumer la circulation dans la Péninsule italienne se démontrent nombreux, et sont en majorité caractérisés par l’association du texte avec un apparat décoratif et illustratif remarquable, qui guide l’interprétation de l’histoire de César. Les pratiques de mise en recueil des Faits des Romains dans les manuscrits italiens font preuve d’un intérêt vivant et multiforme pour le texte, autant dans sa nature de livre d’histoire que dans celle de collections d’exemples de rhétorique et de gouvernement. En offrant une mise à jour contextuelle et matérielle des quatre manuscrits génois des Faits des Romains et des manuscrits du Chronicon, de la Chronique et de la Chronologie, cette thèse précise et détaille le tableau de la culture historique de langues française, latine et italienne entre le XIIIe et le XVe siècle. / This thesis presents the results of a comprehensive analysis of philological, codicological, paleographical, linguistic, decorative, and illustrative elements of four manuscripts of the Faits des Romains copied in Italy at the end of the 13th century: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, fr. 726 and fr. 23082; Città del Vaticano, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Vat. lat. 4792; the fragment Saumur, Médiathèque, 67. This study aims to understand the intentions of the architects of these anthologies, reconstruct the production phases, and pinpoint the cultural peculiarities of theses books. To achieve this, the first part of this thesis traces the origin and investigates the tradition of two unpublished short texts in French prose, of which these manuscripts stand as the oldest preserved copies. The Chronique des empereurs d’Octavien à Frédéric II is a partial translation of Gilbert’s Chronicon pontificum et imperatorum Romanorum, and the Chronologie abrégée depuis Adam jusqu’en 1239 derive from the Latin tradition of Norman minor annals. The study of these traditions results in the publication of the critical edition of the two French texts, and helps specify the characteristics of their reception in Italy. We find them copied after the Faits des Romains, where they provide the history of Julius Caesar of an overview of imperial power’s posterity embedded in a Christian perspective. The comprehensive analysis of the four manuscripts of the Faits des Romains sheds light on the circulation of text, and traces the legacy of Caesar’s biography in vernacular literary and historical products from the 13th to the 15th century. The four manuscripts of the Faits des Romains have been assumed to be produced by Pisan artists and scribes held in Genoa’s prisons at the end of the 13th century. The findings of this study confirm this hypothesis for only one copy (BnF, fr. 726) and cast doubt on the fragment, while the other two copies do not show clear traces of Pisan involvement. It appears evident that many manuscripts of the Faits des Romains circulated in the Italian Peninsula, mostly characterized by the association of the text with a remarkable decorative and illustrative apparatus that guides the interpretation of Caesar’s history. The different examples of mise en recueil of the Faits des Romains prove the vibrant and diverse interest in the text, which serves as both a historical narrative and a collection of examples of rhetoric and governance. By providing some contextual and material updates on the four Genoese manuscripts of the Faits des Romains and on the manuscripts of the Chronicon, the Chronique, and the Chronologie, this thesis contributes to our understanding of historical culture in French, Latin, and Italian languages between the 13th and 15th centuries.

The nature of the Republican constitution has been much contested by scholars studying the history of the Roman Republic. In considering the problems of the late Republic, the nature of the constitution is an important question, for if we do not understand what the constitution was, how can we explain Rome’s transition from ‘Republic’ to ‘Empire’? Such a question is particularly pertinent when looking at events at Rome following the assassination of Caesar, as we try to understand why it was that the Republic, as we understand it as a polity without a sole ruler, was not restored. This thesis examines the Roman understanding of the constitution in the aftermath of Caesar’s death and argues that for the Romans the constitution was a contested entity, its proper nature debated and fought over, and that this contest led to conflict on the political stage, becoming a key factor in the failure to restore the Republic and the establishment of the Second Triumvirate. The thesis proposes a new methodology for the examination of the constitution, employing modern critical theories of discourse and the formation of knowledge to establish and analyse the Roman constitution as a discursive entity: interpreted, contested and established through discourse. I argue that the Roman knowledge of the proper nature of the constitution of the res publica had fractured by the time of Caesar’s death and that this fracturing led to multiple understandings of the constitution. In this thesis I describe the state of Rome in 44-43 B.C. to reveal these multiple understandings of the constitution, and undertake an analysis of the discourse of Cicero and Sallust after 44 B.C. in order to describe the way in which different understandings of the constitution were formulated and expressed. Through this examination this thesis shows that the expression and interrelation of these multiple understandings in Roman political discourse made arrival at a unified agreement on a common course of action all but impossible and that this combined with the volatile atmosphere at Rome after Caesar’s death played a major role in Rome’s slide towards civil war and the eventual establishment of a different political system.

Absent Presence: Women in American Gangster Narrative investigates women characters in American gangster narratives through the principal roles accorded to them. It argues that women in these texts function as an “absent presence,” by which I mean that they are a convention of the patriarchal gangster landscape and often with little import while at the same time they cultivate resistant strategies from within this backgrounded positioning. Whereas previous scholarly work on gangster texts has identified how women are characterized as stereotypes, this dissertation argues that women characters frequently employ the marginal positions to which they are relegated for empowering effect. This dissertation begins by surveying existing gangster scholarship. There is a preoccupation with male characters in this work, as is the case in most gangster texts themselves. This preoccupation is a result of several factors, such as defining the genre upon criteria that exclude women, promoting a male-centred canon as a result, and making assumptions about audience composition and taste that overlook women’s (and some women characters’) interest in gangster texts. Consequently, although the past decade saw women scholars bringing attention to female characters, research on male characters continues to dominate the field. My project thus fills this gap by not only examining the methods by which women characters navigate the male-dominated underworld but also including female-centred gangster narratives. Subsequent chapters focus on women’s predominant roles as mothers, molls, and wives as well as their infrequent role as female gangsters. The mother chapter demonstrates how the gangster’s mother deploys her effacement as an idealized figure in order to disguise her transgressive machinations (White Heat, The Sopranos). The moll chapter examines how this character’s presence as a reforming influence for the male criminal is integral to the earliest narratives. However, a shift to male relationships in mid- to late-1920s gangster texts transforms the moll’s status to that of a moderator (Underworld, The Great Gatsby). On the other hand, subsequent non-canonical texts feature molls as protagonists and illustrate the potential appeal of the gangster figure to women spectators (Three on a Match). Subsequently, the wife chapter explores texts that show presence is manifested in the wife’s cultivation of a traditional family image, while absence is evident in her exposure of this image as a façade via her husband’s activities (The Godfather, Goodfellas). In the following female gangster chapter, I examine how gender functions to render this rare character a literal absent presence such that she is inconceivable as a subject (Lady Scarface, Lady Gangster). Expanding upon this examination of gender, a final chapter on the African-American female gangster (in Set It Off and The Wire) explores how sexuality, race, and female—as well as “gangsta”—masculinity intersect to create this character’s simultaneous hypervisibility and invisibility. By examining women’s roles that often are overlooked in a male-dominated textual type and academic field, this dissertation draws scholarly attention to the ways that peripheral status can offer a stealthy locus for self-assertion.

Absent Presence: Women in American Gangster Narrative investigates women characters in American gangster narratives through the principal roles accorded to them. It argues that women in these texts function as an “absent presence,” by which I mean that they are a convention of the patriarchal gangster landscape and often with little import while at the same time they cultivate resistant strategies from within this backgrounded positioning. Whereas previous scholarly work on gangster texts has identified how women are characterized as stereotypes, this dissertation argues that women characters frequently employ the marginal positions to which they are relegated for empowering effect. This dissertation begins by surveying existing gangster scholarship. There is a preoccupation with male characters in this work, as is the case in most gangster texts themselves. This preoccupation is a result of several factors, such as defining the genre upon criteria that exclude women, promoting a male-centred canon as a result, and making assumptions about audience composition and taste that overlook women’s (and some women characters’) interest in gangster texts. Consequently, although the past decade saw women scholars bringing attention to female characters, research on male characters continues to dominate the field. My project thus fills this gap by not only examining the methods by which women characters navigate the male-dominated underworld but also including female-centred gangster narratives. Subsequent chapters focus on women’s predominant roles as mothers, molls, and wives as well as their infrequent role as female gangsters. The mother chapter demonstrates how the gangster’s mother deploys her effacement as an idealized figure in order to disguise her transgressive machinations (White Heat, The Sopranos). The moll chapter examines how this character’s presence as a reforming influence for the male criminal is integral to the earliest narratives. However, a shift to male relationships in mid- to late-1920s gangster texts transforms the moll’s status to that of a moderator (Underworld, The Great Gatsby). On the other hand, subsequent non-canonical texts feature molls as protagonists and illustrate the potential appeal of the gangster figure to women spectators (Three on a Match). Subsequently, the wife chapter explores texts that show presence is manifested in the wife’s cultivation of a traditional family image, while absence is evident in her exposure of this image as a façade via her husband’s activities (The Godfather, Goodfellas). In the following female gangster chapter, I examine how gender functions to render this rare character a literal absent presence such that she is inconceivable as a subject (Lady Scarface, Lady Gangster). Expanding upon this examination of gender, a final chapter on the African-American female gangster (in Set It Off and The Wire) explores how sexuality, race, and female—as well as “gangsta”—masculinity intersect to create this character’s simultaneous hypervisibility and invisibility. By examining women’s roles that often are overlooked in a male-dominated textual type and academic field, this dissertation draws scholarly attention to the ways that peripheral status can offer a stealthy locus for self-assertion.

Alors que César et ses écrits ont fait l’objet d’une étude approfondie au cours des deux derniers siècles, comment étudier ses commentaires de manière différente? En utilisant une nouvelle approche mise au point par Arthur M. Eckstein dans son oeuvre Mediterranean Anarchy, Interstate War, and the Rise of Rome qui soutient que Rome a conquis de manière opportuniste l'Italie et la Méditerranée orientale à travers une série de guerres défensives ou « d’invitations ». La nouveauté de cette approche est son utilisation des paradigmes de la science politique misant surtout sur le concept de l'anarchie réaliste. En tant que telle, cette thèse utilisera le cadre d'Eckstein et l'appliquera au Bellum Gallicum de César pour montrer que, contrairement à l'historiographie traditionnelle, César n'a pas conquis la Gaule par bellicosité et ambition personnelle, mais plutôt à la suite d'invitation directe de ses alliés gaulois le poussant à intervenir défensivement au nom du bellum iustum. Pour ce faire, un état d’anarchie en Gaule doit être démontré en adhérant au système méditerranéen d’Eckstein. Après quoi, une analyse détaillée du De Bello Gallico de César décrira les cas spécifiques durant lesquels il utilisa de manière opportuniste l'anarchie préexistante à son avantage, avant de finalement se plonger dans les spécificités des «invitations» ainsi que de son utilisation de la diplomatie agressive. Pour y parvenir, nous avons utilisé les commentaires de César comme sources principales, tandis que les travaux susmentionnés d’Eckstein nous ont donné les concepts interprétatifs et la base théorique dont nous avions besoin ; en outre, nous nous sommes appuyés sur plusieurs sources primaires supplémentaires ainsi que sur des études historiques pertinentes. La Gaule ayant été démontrée comme un système anarchique, le modèle d'Eckstein fut appliqué avec succès, et ses résultats mettent en évidence que la bellicosité des Gaulois les uns envers les autres les aveugla du danger romain, chose que César utilisa pour systématiquement intervenir militairement, tout en remplissant les vides de pouvoir qu’il laissa derrière lui. Ce modèle fait preuve d’importance car il nous fournit une explication alternative à la conquête romaine de la Gaule, en se penchant sur la science politique, ouvrant la porte à de vastes autres études, en suivant ce modèle qui reste encore largement inexploré. / While Caesar and his writings have been thoroughly studied for the past two centuries, it is time to make use of a new approach pioneered by Arthur M. Eckstein to study him. In his Mediterranean Anarchy, Interstate War, and the Rise of Rome Eckstein argues that Rome opportunistically conquered Italy and the Eastern Mediterranean through a series of defensive wars or “invitations”. What is novel about this approach is its use of political science paradigms, with a heavy emphasis on the concept of the realist anarchy. As such, using Eckstein’s framework and applying it to Caesar’s Bellum Gallicum this thesis shows that Caesar, contrarily to traditional historiography, did not conquer Gaul out of sheer bellicosity and personal ambition, but rather, as a result of a direct invitation from Rome’s Gallic allies to defensively interfere on their behalf in an act of bellum iustum. To do so, we will demonstrate that a state of anarchy exists in Gaul in accordance to Eckstein’s wider Mediterranean system. After which, a detailed analysis of Caesar’s De Bello Gallico will outline the specific instances in which Caesar opportunistically used this pre-existing anarchy to his advantage, before finally delving into the specificities of the “invitations” along with an analysis of Caesar’s use of aggressive diplomacy. To achieve this, we used first and foremost, Caesar’s commentaries as the primary sources, while Eckstein’s aforementioned work gave us the interpretative concepts and theoretical basis we needed; additionally, we drew on multiple supplementary primary sources and the surrounding relevant scholarship. After we demonstrated that Gaul was an anarchic system, we successfully applied Eckstein’s model, and its results clearly showed that the Gauls’ bellicosity against each other blinded them to the Roman danger, which Caesar used to systematically intervene, filling the power vacua left behind in his wake. This model is important because it provides us with an alternate explanation to the Roman conquest of Gaul, using one of history’s sister disciplines, political science. With this approach’s viability proven, it opens the door for vast other studies, in this as of yet, unexplored direction.