This is an assignment to study and compare the two surviving accounts of the death of Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus, one of the plebeian tribunes in 133 BCE, who sought to reform, through passage of legislation in the Plebeian (Tribal) Assembly, the use of public land (ager publicus) in Italy controlled by the Romans.

Plutarch is writing his biography of Tiberius Gracchus in the late first to early second century CE, while Appian's account, written probably in the mid-second century CE, is part of his longer historical work concerned with the Roman civil wars (which Appian sees as beginning with the political initiatives of the Gracchus brothers). The originals of both accounts are in Greek.

In a carefully organized and edited essay, discuss what you believe are the most important differences and similarities between the two accountstaking care to back up your general statements with specific evidence from the texts.

Required length: 4pg

Appian, Civil Wars 14-17:

14 It was now summer, and the election of tribunes was imminent. As the day for voting approached it was very evident that the rich had earnestly promoted the election of those most inimical to Gracchus. The latter, fearing that evil would befall if he should not bere-electedfor the following year, summoned his friends from the fields to attend the election, but as they were occupied with harvest he was obliged, when the day fixed for the voting drew near, to have recourse to the plebeians of the city. So he went around asking each one separately to elect him tribune for the ensuing year, on account of the danger he was incurring for them. When the voting took place the first two tribes pronounced for Gracchus. The rich objected that it was not lawful for the same man to hold the office twice in succession. The tribune Rubrius, who had been chosen by lot to preside over the assembly meeting, was in doubt about it, and Mummius, who had been chosen in place of Octavius, urged him to hand over the meeting to his charge. This he did, but the remaining tribunes contended that the presidency should be decided by lot, saying that when Rubrius, who had been chosen in that way, resigned, the casting of lots ought to be done over again by all. As there was much strife over this question, Gracchus, who was getting the worst of it, adjourned the voting to the following day. In utter despair he went about in black, though still in office, and led his son around the forum and introduced him to each man and committed him to their charge, as if he himself felt that death, at the hands of his enemies, were at hand.

15 The poor when they had time to think were moved with deep sorrow, both on their own account (for they believed that they were no longer to live in a free estate under equal laws, but would be reduced to servitude by the rich), and on account of Gracchus himself, who was in such fear and torment in their behalf. So they all accompanied him with tears to his house in the evening, and told him to be of good courage for the morrow. Gracchus cheered up, assembled his partisans before daybreak, and communicated to them a signal to be displayed if there were need for fighting. He then took possession of the temple on the Capitoline hill, where the voting was to take place, and occupied the middle of the assembly. As he was obstructed by the other tribunes and by the rich, who would not allow the votes to be taken on this question, he gave the signal. There was a sudden shout from those who knew of it, and violence followed. Some of the partisans of Gracchus took position around him likebodyguards. Others, having girded up their clothes, seized the fasces and staves in the hands of the lictors and broke them in pieces. They drove the rich out of the assembly with such disorder and wounds that the tribunes fled from their places in terror, and the priests closed the doors of the temple. Many ran away pell-mell and scattered wild rumors. Some said that Gracchus had deposed all the other tribunes, and this was believed because none of them could be seen. Others said that he had declared himself tribune for the ensuing year without an election.

16In these circumstances the Senate assembled at the Temple of Fides ("Good Faith").It is astonishing to me that they never thought of appointing a dictator in this emergency, although they had often been protected by the government of a single ruler in such times of peril; but a resource which had been found most useful in former times was never even recollected by the people, either then or later.After reaching such decision as they did reach, they marched up to the Capitol, Cornelius Scipio Nasica, the Pontifex Maximus, leading the way and calling out with a loud voice, "Let those who would save our country follow me."He wound the border of his toga about his head either to induce a greater number to go with him by the singularity of his appearance, or to make for himself, as it were, a helmet as a sign of battle for those who saw it, or in order to conceal himself from the gods on account of what he was about to do.When he arrived at the temple and advanced against the partisans of Gracchus they yielded out of regard for so excellent a citizen, and because they observed theSenators following with him.The latter wresting their clubs out of the hands of the Gracchan suppporters themselves, or breaking up benches and other furniture that had been brought for the use of the assembly, began beating them, and pursued them, and drove them over the precipice. In the tumult many of the Gracchan supporters perished, and Gracchus himself, vainly circling round the temple,was slain at the door close by the statues of the kings.All the bodies were thrown by night into the Tiber.

17 So perished on the Capitol, and while still tribune, Gracchus, the son of that Gracchus who was twice consul, and of Cornelia, daughter of that Scipio who robbed Carthage of her supremacy. He lost his life in consequence of a most excellent design too violently pursued; and this abominable crime, the first that was perpetrated in the public assembly, was seldom without parallels thereafter from time to time. On the subject of the murder of Gracchus the city was divided between sorrow and joy. Some mourned for themselves and for him, and deplored the present condition of things, believing that the commonwealth no longer existed, but had been supplanted by force and violence. Others considered that their dearest wishes were accomplished.

Note on Section 14, "Mummius, who had been chosen in place of Octavius": Octavius had been the only one of the ten plebeian tribunes who opposed Tiberius Gracchus' proposal, and consequently Gracchus had the Assembly vote him out of office (cf. a modern "recall election" aimed at removing a public official). Mummius had then been chosen in Octavius' place.

Plutarch, Life of Tiberius Gracchus 16-20:

16 1Such were the chief points in the justification of his course which Tiberius made. And now his friends, observing the threats and the hostile combination against him, thought that he ought to be made tribune again for the following year. Once more, therefore, Tiberius sought to win the favor of the multitude by fresh laws, reducing the time of military service, granting appeal to the people from the verdicts of the judges, adding to the judges, who at that time were composed of senators only, an equal number from the equestrian order, 2and in every way at length trying to maim the power of the senate from motives of anger and contentiousness rather than from calculations of justice and the public good. And when, as the voting was going on, the friends of Tiberius perceived that their opponents were getting the better of the contest, since all the people were not present, in the first place they resorted to abuse of his fellow tribunes, and so protracted the time; next, they dismissed the assembly, and ordered that it should convene on the following day. 3Then Tiberius, going down into the forum, at first supplicated the citizens in a humble manner and with tears in his eyes; next, he declared he was afraid that his enemies would break into his house by night and kill him, and thereby so moved his hearers that great numbers of them took up their station about his house and spent the night there on guard.

17 1At break of day there came to the house the man who brought the birds with which auspices are taken, and threw food before them. But the birds would not come out of the cage, with the exception of one, though the keeper shook the cage right hard; and even the one that came out would not touch the food, but raised its left wing, stretched out its leg, and then ran back into the cage. This reminded Tiberius of an omen that had happened earlier. 2He had a helmet which he wore in battle, exceptionally adorned and splendid; into this serpents crawled unnoticed, laid eggs there and hatched them out. For this reason Tiberius was all the more disturbed by the signs from the birds. But nevertheless he set out, on learning that the people were assembled on the Capitol; 3and before he got out of the house, he stumbled against the threshold. The blow was so severe that the nail of his great toe was broken and the blood ran out through his shoe. He had gone but a little way when ravens were seen fighting on the roof of a house to his left hand; and though there were many people, as was natural, passing by, a stone dislodged by one of the ravens fell at the foot of Tiberius himself. This caused even the boldest of his followers to pause; 4but Blossius of Cumae, who was present, said it would be a shame and a great disgrace if Tiberius, a son of Gracchus, a grandson of Scipio Africanus, and a champion of the Roman people, for fear of a raven should refuse to obey the summons of his fellow citizens; such shameful conduct, moreover, would not be made a mere matter of ridicule by his enemies, but they would decry him to the people as one who was at last giving himself the airs of a tyrant. 5At the same time also many of his friends on the Capitol came running to Tiberius with urgent appeals to hasten to get there, since matters there were going well. And in fact things turned out splendidly for Tiberius at first; as soon as he came into view the crowd raised a friendly shout, and as he came up the hill they gave him a cordial welcome and ranged themselves about him, that no stranger might approach.

18 1But after Mucius began once more to summon the tribes to the vote, none of the customary forms could be observed because of the disturbance that arose on the outskirt of the throng, where there was crowding back and forth between the friends of Tiberius and their opponents, who were striving to force their way in and mingle with the rest. Moreover, at this juncture Fulvius Flaccus, a senator, posted himself in a conspicuous place, and since it was impossible to make his voice heard so far, indicated with his hand that he wished to tell Tiberius something meant for his ear alone. 2Tiberius ordered the crowd to part for Flaccus, who made his way up to him with difficulty, and told him that at a session of the senate the party of the rich, since they could not prevail upon the consul to do so, were purposing to kill Tiberius themselves, and for this purpose had under arms a multitude of their friends and slaves.

19 1Tiberius, accordingly, reported this to those who stood about him, and they at once girded up their togas, and breaking in pieces the spear-shafts with which the officers keep back the crowd, distributed the fragments among themselves, that they might defend themselves against their assailants. 2Those who were farther off, however, wondered at what was going on and asked what it meant. Whereupon Tiberius put his hand to his head, making this visible sign that his life was in danger, since the questioners could not hear his voice. But his opponents, on seeing this, ran to the senate and told that body that Tiberius was asking for a crown; and that his putting his hand to his head was a sign having that meaning. 3All the senators, of course, were greatly disturbed, and Nasica demanded that the consul should come to the rescue of the state and put down the tyrant. The consul replied with mildness that he would resort to no violence and would put no citizen to death without a trial; if, however, the people, under persuasion or compulsion from Tiberius, should vote anything that was unlawful, he would not regard this vote as binding. Thereupon Nasica sprang to his feet and said: "Since, then, the chief magistrate betrays the state, do you who wish to preserve the laws follow me." 4With these words he covered his head with the skirt of his toga and set out for the Capitol. All the senators who followed him wrapped their togas about their left arms and pushed aside those who stood in their path, no man opposing them, in view of their dignity, but all taking to flight and trampling upon one another.

5Now, the attendants of the senators carried clubs and staves which they had brought from home; but the senators themselves seized the fragments and legs of the benches that were shattered by the crowd in its flight, and went up against Tiberius, at the same time striking those who were drawn up to protect him. Of these there was a rout and a slaughter, and as Tiberius himself turned to fly, someone laid hold of his garments. 6So he let his toga go and fled in his tunic. But he stumbled and fell to the ground among some bodies that lay in front of him. As he strove to rise to his feet, he received his first blow, as everybody admits, from Publius Satyreius, one of his colleagues, who struck him on the head with the leg of a bench; to the second blow claim was made by Lucius Rufus, who plumed himself upon it as upon some noble deed. And of the rest more than three hundred were slain by blows from sticks and stones, but not one by the sword.

20 1This is said to have been the first sedition at Rome, since the abolition of royal power, to end in bloodshed and the death of citizens; the rest though neither trifling nor raised for trifling objects, were settled by mutual concessions, the nobles yielding from fear of the multitude, and the people out of respect for the senate. And it was thought that even on this occasion Tiberius would have given way without difficulty had persuasion been brought to bear upon him, and would have yielded still more easily if his assailants had not resorted to wounds and bloodshed; 2for his adherents numbered not more than three thousand. But the combination against him would seem to have arisen from the hatred and anger of the rich rather than from the pretexts which they alleged; and there is strong proof of this in their lawless and savage treatment of his dead body. For they would not listen to his brother's request that he might take up the body and bury it by night, but threw it into the river along with the other dead. 3Nor was this all; they banished some of his friends without a trial and others they arrested and put to death. Among these Diophanes the rhetorician also perished. Acertain Caius Villius they shut up in a cage, and then put in vipers and serpents, and in this way killed him. Blossius of Cumae was brought before the consuls, and when he was asked about what had passed, he admitted that he had done everything at the bidding of Tiberius. 4Then Nasica said to him, "What, then, if Tiberius had ordered you to set fire to the Capitol?" Blossius at first replied that Tiberius would not have given such an order; but when the same question was put to him often and by many persons, he said: "If such a man as Tiberius had ordered such a thing, it would also have been right for me to do it; for Tiberius would not have given such an order if it had not been for the interest of the people." Well, then, Blossius was acquitted, and afterwards went to Aristonicus in Asia, and when the cause of Aristonicus was lost, slew himself.

Note on Section 16.2: The assembly is the Plebeian (Tribal) Assembly.

Note on Section 18: Mucius is one of the plebeian tribunes. Fulvius Flaccus, a senator who had also served as consul in the past, supported Tiberius' reforms.

Note on Section 19.3: "The consul" is one of the two consuls for the year who is presiding over the meeting of the Senate.

Note on Section 20: Diophanes was a teacher of speaking (rhetoric) from the Greek city of Mytilene on the island of Lesbos. Blossius of Cumae was a native Campanian and a philosopher. Aristonicus was the leader of an ongoing revolt against Roman control in what is now western Turkey (province of "Asia").

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