The Only Way To Escape
This a creative piece that is based on historical fact, but is not necessarily accurate.
After Marc Antony's death, I, Cleopatra was visited by Octavian. He came to Alexandria,where I live and rule. There, my role in his triumph was explained. It was made clear that he was not interested in a relationship or any settlement; he just wanted to disgrace me.
"You, Cleopatra, are going to be displayed as a slave in the cities that you have ruled. You will be humiliated," commented Octavian.
At that point, a number of things raced through my mind. It was going to be horrifying if I were to be put on display as a slave. Me, the Queen of Egypt, portrayed as a slave. It was something too hard to imagine. I am nothing like a slave. I have had jewels, riches, and a glamorous life, up until now. A slave is poor, hungry, and sick. They must constantly work and they are owned by others. What would people think if the Queen of Egypt were pictured as a slave? How could I live with that embarrassment or be taken seriously ever again? I had memories of my sister, Arsinoe, being humiliated in the same way. I wonder what went through her mind? Was there any way to escape this embarrassment?
Suddenly, I felt uneasy. I now knew that my lover was dead, and all because he thought that I was dead. In his grieving, he killed himself. Why would he have sacrificed his own life? Because he thought I was dead? Did he love me that much, enough to kill himself? There were so many questions, and too few answers. Nothing made sense. How did Octavian gain all of the power? Why am I going to be abused? This was an idea that I was not used to. I am a leader, not a captive. I should have the power, not be threatened and publicly humiliated. I need to find a way to escape. I thought for awhile, but nothing came to mind. Again, Octavian spoke.
"You will be displayed over a number of days. Never again will you be treated like the queen that you think you are. I have to make sure that you don't escape. I don't know how I would live with myself if you got away. Nothing will make me happier than seeing you being embarrassed, you, represented as a slave, paraded through the cities in which you ruled over. Finally, I have the power, and Cleopatra will be gone."
All of a sudden, a thought came to mind. What other plans did Octavian have for me? I knew that he didn't want a relationship and there was no way to reason with him, but did Octavian just want to embarrass me, or was there something more? Then I considered that one of my greatest fears might become a reality. Did Octavian want to kill me? Would a thought that evil even enter his mind? I was not sure of the answer, but death alone scared me. As I thought for awhile, I realized that he helped to kill Marc Antony. He made sure that Antony thought that I was dead, and as a result, he killed himself. Maybe something so malicious was possible and maybe Octavian was behind it. He wanted power. How far would he go to achieve it?
I sat silently on a wooden chair. I had sat there many times before, but something was different this time. Before, I was happy. I had strengthened the alliance between Egypt and Rome through my relationships with Julius Caesar and Marc Antony. I thought that I was a natural leader and someone that people wanted as a ruler. I can speak nine languages fluently, although Latin is not among them. I am devoted to my country, and I don't want to be humiliated in front of the people living here. However, when I sat on the chair, I felt powerless and defenseless. I saw no escape from this situation, which scared me. I had never been in a situation that I could not control.
Then, I thought of something. I decided to hide in my tomb until I figured out what to do. Octavian left my palace. I sat in a cold room and thought for a long time. I was extremely depressed because I didn't know what to do. I was afraid of the unknown and what Octavian was going to do after I had been displayed as a slave. I then determined that I was going to accept the fact that I might die. To me, that was the worst circumstance that could come from this situation with Octavian. I thought about what death meant and what it would be like.
I could have an afterlife. If I was immortal, then one of my many dreams could be fulfilled. There was going to be a whole different life after my death. I wanted to be immortal if I died. There was an old Egyptian tradition that said if you were bitten by an asp, a small poisonous snake, it would secure your immortality. Despite the fact that I would again be with my family and friends, I felt that I was not ready to die. Nevertheless, Octavian might not have had the same thought. If I was going to die, what things would I want to be resolved? The first thing that entered my mind was that I wanted to be buried next to my love, Marc Antony. I was not sure how I could express my feelings, but I thought that I should write a letter to Octavian. If I was going to die, he would most likely be the cause, and he should know my last request. So I began to write my letter:
Dear Octavian,
I now realize that I am going to die. I have come to accept that, but I have a final wish. As of this moment, I have no idea how I will die or even when. I am confused and upset about how my life is going to end. I would have never imagined that I would be humiliated like Arsinoe, my sister. The thought that I might be put to death never crossed my mind. I think that I was a good leader and one that the people liked.
I will never forget the fact that you told Antony that I was dead, and as a result, he killed himself. Now you are going to publicly humiliate me and probably kill me as well. It is sad that you are going to this extent, just because you have power. The only reason you are doing this is because you feel threatened by both Antony and me. You feel that we stand in the way of your success, and so you must eliminate us. Unfortunately, you have already made that a reality where Antony was concerned.
I have thought for a long time, looking for ways to escape, but I am still unsure of the answer. As I mentioned before, I have a final request. I am not positive that you are going to kill me, but I want to be prepared if you do. If you decide to kill me, like you killed Antony, then I want to be buried next to him. I love him and I want to spend the afterlife with him. This is something that both Antony and I want. Once I am dead, I am no longer a threat, so if you would please grant my one wish, it would make all the difference in the world. Once I am gone, you will have won. You will have the power and there is nothing either Antony or I can do. All I want is to rest next to Antony for eternity. I hope that even if you don't have the heart to spare my life, you will at least grant my one request, my final request.
Cleopatra
I made sure that Octavian received the letter and knew my wish, but it wasn't enough. I then knew that I had done all that I could do in order to rest next to Antony forever, but I still wanted to escape from the embarrassment that I would soon be put through. I did not want to be portrayed as a slave. I am Cleopatra, the Queen of Egypt. I did not deserve to be humiliated like that. My life should not be ended that way. I should not be remembered as a slave. That should not be one of my final memories, but I fear that it will be. I did not know what to do. But then suddenly, a thought came to my mind. I was almost convinced that I was going to be killed after I was publicly humiliated. I did not want to go through any of the things that I was about to experience. My love, Marc Antony was dead, and I was about to be. I was to be displayed as a slave in the cities that I had ruled over. I would be thought of as a joke and die the same way that my sister did. I am a leader. I am dedicated. I am a queen. I will not be humiliated.
I decided to kill myself. I knew that I was either going to be killed, or die from humiliation. It took awhile to come to the conclusion, but I would rather die, than go through embarrassment and then be killed. It was very hot outside, the hottest that it is all year, and I knew that I would not live to see it become warm again.
The next morning, I was still certain that killing myself was the only answer. After long, agonizing hours, I finally found peace. I had an asp brought to me, hidden in a basket of figs. At first, I was nervous because I couldn't believe that I was about to kill myself. However, when the basket came, I set it down on the floor. It was made of small brown twigs, tightly bound together. The fruits were piled high, and I knew that somewhere underneath, the snake was placed. Slowly, the head of the tiny beast, showed itself. It crawled out and moved around on the floor. It shortly found my body and bit me. It bit me on my arm. Although I knew that I would never see this life again, I knew that I would rather be bitten by a snake, than killed by Octavian. The asp would secure my immortality, which was something that I desired. And so, on that following day at 39 years of age, I killed myself, but I would be immortal and not be publically embarrassed.
Dory N. '02, Germantown Academy