The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

One of the most famous elements of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire is Gibbon’s wit. Gibbon often uses humor in his narrative, especially when he wishes to offer sarcastic critique of leaders and events he deems worthy of censure or mockery.

Gibbon sometimes pokes fun at his contemporaries while exploring Roman history. Some examples include a joke made in one of the footnotes, where he writes that fellow historian Voltaire “unsupported by either fact or probability, has generously bestowed the Canary Islands on the Roman empire” (26). In another passage about Gordian I, Gibbon mentions his “Twenty-two acknowledged concubines” and library containing “sixty-two thousand volumes,” adding that these two facts attest to “the variety of his inclinations.“ In another footnote, Gibbon adds to the joke, saying about Gordian III, “By each of his concubines, the younger Gordian left three or four children. His literary productions, though less numerous, were by no means contemptible” (176).

Gibbon’s use of wit and satire were in keeping with the general literary culture of his time, as 18th-century England heavily favored both, as witnessed in the huge popularity of Alexander Pope’s satires and comic novels such as Tom Jones. In combining scholarly erudition with a colorful and witty literary style, Gibbon presents himself as a sophisticated “man of letters” well in tune with the tastes of the reading public of his time.