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What connotation does writing about oneself in the third person carry in Latin?

In English, it usually connotes that the author is astoundingly arrogant, perhaps to the point of insanity.

But Caesar famously wrote his entire Commentarii de Bello Gallico about himself in the third person. And while Caesar surely had more arrogance than the average person, I believe it was considered dangerous "ambition" rather than insanity. The Commentarii are written coolly, with the third person suggesting the perspective of an objective, impersonal reporter (who just happens to make Caesar look extraordinarily shrewd and formidable).

And it's customary to write about oneself in the third person in greetings and closings in letters, e.g. Cicero Terentiae Salutem Plurimam Dicit. So, would a tattoo describing oneself in the third person carry an unusual connotation?

Inspired by this comment from Sebastian Koppehel.

Ben Kovitz
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Caesar's works were written by an amanuensis, not by Caesar himself, so what you are reading are the renditions of the secretary(s). That is why they are in the third person.

Caesar himself was very modest and diplomatic in dealing with other people, so it would be wrong to characterize him as arrogant, which he was not in any way.

Referring to oneself in a tattoo in the third person would be acceptable and normal if the text was epigrammatic.

Tyler Durden
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  • Ah, I'd never heard that Caesar's use of the third person was because the text was written by an amanuensis. Is Caesar's famous spare, clear style also due to the amanuensis? (Maybe this should be a separate question.) – Ben Kovitz Jul 23 '22 at 20:04
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    We don't know the exact process by which BG/BC was composed, it is very much possible that Caesar dictated it all word by word. But even if it was all written by some sort of ghostwriter, that person could easily have written it in Caesar's voice; it was, after all, published under his name. So whatever the editorial process, the third-person narrative was a conscious decision and fully intended the effect of the great general writing about himself in the third person. – Sebastian Koppehel Jul 24 '22 at 17:49