Lucan’s Bellum Civile (Pharsalia) is traditionally read as a political critique of the Principate. However, several features of this text run counter to this interpretation. This study reexamines Lucan’s work using the model of the unreliable narrator to illuminate its portrayal of contradictory structures in Nero’s Principate. The interdisciplinary approach offers a new perspective on Lucan’s epic poem and its historical importance.