Which detail best shapes and refines the central idea? Dictatorships
by Hal Marcovitz
(excerpt from "The Rise of Julius Caesar")
As Caesar made his way back to Rome, the Senate ordered him to disband his army. Caesar refused. Instead, on January 10 in 49 BCE, Caesar
led his army in an attack on Rome. As his army crossed the Rubicon River to reenter Italy, Caesar is said to have remarked, "Let the dice fly
high"
Caesar's ploy was not much of a gamble. His army easily swept aside his enemies, including his one-time ally, Pompey. Caesar marched into the
city and declared himself dictator. After another four years of warfare in which he pursued his enemies across Europe and Africa, Caesar
returned to Rome. He found the once-deflant senate now willing to bow down to his authoritarian power. The Roman senators elected Caesar
dictator for life, fearing for their careers and their lives if they did not. Observing how the Roman republic, which had endured for some five
centuries, had now crumbled beneath the feet of a dictator, the ancient Roman historian Applan lamented, "The people hoped that (Caesar]
would also give them back democracy, just as Sulla had done, who had achieved a position of equal power. However, they were disappointed in
this."