The untimely and violent deaths of Horatia and Lucretia, two key stories in the tradition on Rome’s social and constitutional development, are differently handled by Dionysius. In Horatia’s case he stresses the familial rift, applying epic and tragic colouring that befits the archaic epoch and evokes the Hellenic nature of Roman society. With Lucretia’s suicide he downplays the personal element, and particularly the role of husband Collatinus, in favour of a highly politicised narrative that shifts the emphasis from individual wrong and revenge to valid constitutional progress. Augustan concerns for sexual morality and the boundary between the private and public spheres are apparent in his handling of these two exempla. Appropriate techniques in depicting character and motivation advertise Dionysius’ grasp of the principles of good historical writing and his claim to possess the correct disposition for a historian capable of conveying to his readers a proper understanding of political change.