THRESHOLD OF FIRE: A NOVEL OF FIFTH CENTURY ROME

Initially published in The Netherlands in 1964, Haasse's ( In the Dark Wood Wandering ) pensive novel of the clash between Christian and pagan cultures in A.D. 414 is a far cry from the likes of Lloyd C. Douglas or Lew Wallace. For one thing, it's the pagan Romans following the faith of their forefathers who are persecuted in accordance with the edicts of Theodosius, while Christians exploit their new authority. There are despicable and admirable representatives of both cults; the only two truly honorable characters are an Egyptian Jew and his illegitimate half-slave grandson. After an Alexandrian education, this grandson returns to Rome, from where he had been exiled after one of the political shifts of the late Empire, to become the poet Claudian, an historical figure often considered the last classical Roman writer. His unlawful presence in Rome brings him into conflict with the Christian Prefect Hadrian. Although the real Claudian is sometimes claimed by Christians, Haasse's creation eschews established religion in favor of humanism. It is Claudian's character and his "faith" that forms the core of a book both less dogmatic and wiser than many which concern this period.
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The cusps of the past are further explored in another of the prolific Haasse's historical sagas (In a Dark Wood Wandering, 1989; The Scarlet City, 1990)--a 1964 novel newly translated from the Dutch in which the clash of religions and codes of honor comes vividly to the fore in Christianized fifth-century Rome. Hadrian, haughty Prefect of Rome and a Christian zealot but acutely aware of the taint of his Egyptian heritage in higher circles of ethnically pure Romans, finds himself on the horns of a dilemma when forced to decide the fate of a man brought before him for conducting forbidden pagan practices. The man is familiar, although his name is not, but when he challenges Hadrian's authority during his hearing, the Prefect remembers him: he's the boy who defied Hadrian in Egypt years before, and yet whose brilliance subsequently elevated him to the status of court poet in Rome, until he transgressed and was exiled forever from the city--a sentence tantamount to death. But Claudius Claudianus survived, living unrecognized among the rabble in his beloved city for a decade and teaching them to read and write, until a bizarre sequence of events involving a dwarf, a prostitute, and an actor in search of former glory brought him back to Hadrian's attention. Torn between his sense of duty and an obligation to Claudius's grandfather, a wealthy Jewish landowner who gave the boy an education and opportunity while keeping his parentage a secret, Hadrian tells the prisoner of his origins and violates the Prefect's oath of office to spare his life, but the proud poet has other plans. Rich in psychological and historical detail, with both the characters and ancient Rome vibrantly alive: a subtle, quiet tale eloquently told. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.