Quo Vadis: A Narrative of the Time of Nero, commonly known as Quo Vadis, is a historical novel written by Henryk Sienkiewicz in Polish.The novel Quo Vadis tells of a love that develops between a young Christian woman, Lygia (Ligia in Polish) and Marcus Vinicius, a Roman patrician. It takes place in the city of Rome under the rule of emperor Nero, c. AD 64.Sienkiewicz studied the Roman Empire extensively before writing the novel, with the aim of getting historical details correct. Consequently, several historical figures appear in the book. As a whole, the novel carries a pro-Christian message.
Quo Vadis: A Narrative of the Time of Nero, commonly known as Quo Vadis, is a historical novel written by Henryk Sienkiewicz. Quo vadis is Latin for "Where are you going?" and alludes to a New Testament verse (John 13:36). The verse, in the King James Version, reads as follows, "Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither goest thou? Jesus answered him, Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterwards."Quo Vadis tells of a love that develops between a young Christian woman, Ligia (or Lygia), and Marcus Vinicius, a Roman patrician. It takes place in the city of Rome under the rule of emperor Nero around AD 64.Sienkiewicz studied the Roman Empire extensively prior to writing the novel, with the aim of getting historical details correct. As such, several historical figures appear in the book. As a whole, the novel carries a powerful pro-Christian message.Published in installments in three Polish dailies in 1895, it came out in book form in 1896 and has since been translated into more than 50 languages. This novel contributed to Sienkiewicz's Nobel Prize for literature in 1905.
Rome in Emperor Nero's times is steeped in crime and debauchery. Marcus Vinicius, a young and beautiful warrior, comes to his uncle Gaius Petronius, who is a writer, aesthete, connoisseur of luxury and pleasure, and the approximate of Nero. The young man says that, upon returning to Rome from the war against the Parthians, he injured his hand and has been taken to the house of the white-haired commander Aulus Plautius for care.There Vinicius was captivated by a young Ligia, the daughter of the king of the Ligians, who lived in far northern forests. At home, the Ligians called her Galina. She came to Rome as a young hostage and grew up in the house of the noble Aulus and his faithful, virtuous wife Pomponia. Treating Ligia as their own daughter, they raised her pure and chaste. She was nothing like the debauched women of Rome. Pomponia is said to be a Christian, but Petronius does not believe it, as Christians are said to be terrible villains, and Pomponia's face seems to radiate light, which cannot be villainous in any way.In the house of Aulus Vinicius, Vinicius uttered many fervent words to Ligia, and the girl's heart burnt with reciprocal feeling. Now Vinicius is ready to marry Ligia, but he does not understand one thing: why she draws fish on the sand. Petronius tells Nero that Vinicius fell in love with the weedy hostage Ligia, and the Emperor promises Petronius to take Ligia to his palace and give her to Vinicius.
Rome in Emperor Nero's times is steeped in crime and debauchery. Marcus Vinicius, a young and beautiful warrior, comes to his uncle Gaius Petronius, who is a writer, aesthete, connoisseur of luxury and pleasure, and the approximate of Nero. The young man says that, upon returning to Rome from the war against the Parthians, he injured his hand and has been taken to the house of the white-haired commander Aulus Plautius for care. There Vinicius was captivated by a young Ligia, the daughter of the king of the Ligians, who lived in far northern forests. At home, the Ligians called her Galina. She came to Rome as a young hostage and grew up in the house of the noble Aulus and his faithful, virtuous wife Pomponia. Treating Ligia as their own daughter, they raised her pure and chaste. She was nothing like the debauched women of Rome. Pomponia is said to be a Christian, but Petronius does not believe it, as Christians are said to be terrible villains, and Pomponia's face seems to radiate light, which cannot be villainous in any way.
Rome in Emperor Nero's times is steeped in crime and debauchery. Marcus Vinicius, a young and beautiful warrior, comes to his uncle Gaius Petronius, who is a writer, aesthete, connoisseur of luxury and pleasure, and the approximate of Nero. The young man says that, upon returning to Rome from the war against the Parthians, he injured his hand and has been taken to the house of the white-haired commander Aulus Plautius for care.There Vinicius was captivated by a young Ligia, the daughter of the king of the Ligians, who lived in far northern forests. At home, the Ligians called her Galina. She came to Rome as a young hostage and grew up in the house of the noble Aulus and his faithful, virtuous wife Pomponia. Treating Ligia as their own daughter, they raised her pure and chaste. She was nothing like the debauched women of Rome. Pomponia is said to be a Christian, but Petronius does not believe it, as Christians are said to be terrible villains, and Pomponia's face seems to radiate light, which cannot be villainous in any way.
As the subtitle of the novel makes clear, the novel is "a narrative of the time of Nero." These are the time of the burning of Rome, the brutal persecutions of the Christians, and the apostles Peter and Paul.Despondent, fearful, and doubtful, Peter flees from a crucifixion in Rome. On the road, Peter meets Jesus, and he asks him: "Quo Vadis? Jesus?"Jesus answer is what Peter needed to hear to turn back and continue his divine ministry."I am going to Rome," replies Jesus, "to be crucified again" (Eo Romam iterum crucifigi). At the time, Rome was the greatest of the ancient empires, yet by all means it was truly a brutal one. Only citizens had some rights. And slaves -property- suffered the worst treatment; that is, until the Christians came to the fore.Although Quo Vadis is an action book, it is also a love story between the Christian Lygia and the Roman noble Vinicius. It is a romance set in the midst of the moral upheavals that was tearing up the Roman Empire.
This premium quality large print edition includes the unabridged classic version of Quo Vadis in a large 7.44"x9.69" format, printed on heavy, bright white 60# paper with a fully laminated full-color cover featuring an original design. Set against the backdrop of the madness of the blood-soaked reign of Emperor Nero, Quo Vadis tells the story of the epic moral clash between the debauched paganism of the mighty Roman Empire and the austere piety of Christianity in its infancy. Quo Vadis is also the story of the personal philosophical journey of a small group of individuals seeking to find their way among the conflicting ideas in a time of upheaval which would, in the end, change the course of human history. Written by Polish novelist Henryk Sienkiewicz, recipient of the 1905 Nobel Prize for Literature, the novel was first serialized in Polish periodicals in 1895, with the novel version published in 1896 and subsequently translated into some fifty different languages. Jeremiah Curtain's 1897 English translation was a huge best-seller, putting U.S. publishe Little, Brown on firm financial footing. By far the most widely-read translation, it has long been the "standard" version. While some commenters have argued that Curtain's translation is "stilted" or "dated", Sienkiewicz himself, who read and spoke English, after reading Curtain's translations of his works wrote, in 1898, "I admire not only the sincere conscientiousness and accuracy, but also the skill, with which you did the work. Your countrymen will establish your merit better than I; as to me, I can only desire that you and no one else should translate all that I write. With respect and friendship, Henryk Sienkiewicz."
