How did Sallust influence Tacitus’s historical writing?

Sallust served as a significant model for Tacitus, who studied the earlier historian's techniques to inform his own political interpretations and narrative style. Tacitus’s writing is widely considered an extreme development of the Sallustian style, characterized by a deliberate avoidance of the commonplace and the incorporation of archaic and poetic language.12

The influence of Sallust on Tacitus is evident in several key areas:

• Stylistic Refinement: Tacitus exploited and refined Sallust’s manner, utilizing a concise, forceful, and rhythmic use of Latin that avoids artificial smoothness. Like Sallust, Tacitus employed striking, pointed epigrams to convey complex political realities.3142
• Literary Technique: Tacitus adopted and controlled the techniques of Roman historiography—such as the use of speeches, character sketches, and digressions—that Sallust had previously employed to enliven his narratives.31
• Political Interpretation: While both historians were preoccupied with political themes, Tacitus moved beyond Sallust’s approach. Whereas Sallust might have created a master narrative regarding impersonal forces, Tacitus focused more intensely on the character of individual emperors to explore the nature of power.4