The Art of Seduction by Robert Greene Read Free Book Online

and illustrious woman would prove his greatness. And so who associated with her he stayed, and, like Caesar, fell slowly under her spell. She indulged him in under its spell. It was a all of his weaknesses—gambling, raucous parties, elaborate rituals, lavish delight merely to hear the
    sound of her voice, with spectacles. To get him to come back to Rome, Octavius, another member of which, like an instrument the Roman triumvirate, offered him a wife: Octavius's own sister, Octavia, of many strings, she could
    one of the most beautiful women in Rome. Known for her virtue and
    pass from one language to
    another.
    goodness, she could surely keep Antony away from the "Egyptian whore."
    — P L U T A R C H , MAKERS OF
    The ploy worked for a while, but Antony was unable to forget Cleopatra, ROME, TRANSLATED BY IAN
    and after three years he went back to her. This time it was for good: he had SCOTT-KILVERT
    in essence become Cleopatra's slave, granting her immense powers, adopting Egyptian dress and customs, and renouncing the ways of Rome. The immediate attraction
    of a song, a voice, or scent. Only one image of Cleopatra survives—a barely visible profile on a coin—
    The attraction of the but we have numerous written descriptions. She had a long thin face and a panther with his perfumed somewhat pointed nose; her dominant features were her wonderfully large scent . . . According to the
    ancients, the panther is eyes. Her seductive power, however, did not lie in her looks—indeed many the only animal who emits among the women of Alexandria were considered more beautiful than she. a perfumed odor. It uses What she did have above all other women was the ability to distract a man. this scent to draw and
    capture its victims. . . . In reality, Cleopatra was physically unexceptional and had no political But what is it that seduces power, yet both Caesar and Antony, brave and clever men, saw none of in a scent? . . . What is it this. What they saw was a woman who constantly transformed herself be in the song of the Sirens fore their eyes, a one-woman spectacle. Her dress and makeup changed that seduces us, or in the
    beauty of a face, in the depths from day to day, but always gave her a heightened, goddesslike appearance. The Siren • 9
    Her voice, which all writers talk of, was lilting and intoxicating. Her words of an abyss . . . ?
    could be banal enough, but were spoken so sweetly that listeners would Seduction lies in the annulment of signs and
    find themselves remembering not what she said but how she said it.
    their meaning, in pure
    Cleopatra provided constant variety—tributes, mock battles, expedi- appearance. The eyes that tions, costumed orgies. Everything had a touch of drama and was accom- seduce have no meaning, plished with great energy. By the time your head lay on the pillow beside they end in the gaze, as the face with makeup
    her, your mind was spinning with images and dreams. And just when you ends in only pure thought you had this fluid, larger-than-life woman, she would turn distant appearance. . . . The scent or angry, making it clear that everything was on her terms. You never pos- of the panther is also a meaningless message — and
    sessed Cleopatra, you worshiped her. In this way a woman who had been behind the message the exiled and destined for an early death managed to turn it all around and panther is invisible, as is rule Egypt for close to twenty years.
    the woman beneath her
    makeup. The Sirens too
    From Cleopatra we learn that it is not beauty that makes a Siren but remained unseen. The rather a theatrical streak that allows a woman to embody a man's fantasies. enchantment lies in what A man grows bored with a woman, no matter how beautiful; he yearns for is hidden. different pleasures, and for adventure. All a woman needs to turn this —JEAN BAUDRILLARD, DE LA around is to create the illusion that she offers such variety and adventure. A SÉDUCTION
    man is easily deceived by appearances; he has a