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ancient rome

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ancient rome

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    1. Ancient Rome A Presentation for English 2332 Central Texas College Dr. Brenda Cornell

    3. Map of Ancient Rome This map illustrates borders before vast Roman expansion.

    4. Fall of Rome However, a number of factors led to the eventual decline of the Roman Empire. The western half of the empire, including Hispania, Gaul, and Italy, eventually broke into independent kingdoms in the 5th century; the eastern empire, governed from Constantinople, is referred to as the Byzantine Empire after 476, the traditional date for the "fall of Rome" and subsequent onset of the Middle Ages.

    5. Roman Society Upper class (patricians) Lower class (plebeians) These groups maintained a delicate balance, which the orator Marcus Tullius Cicero called the concordia ordinis. This idea was so significant to the Romans that it became part of their religion. A temple to Concordia, the goddess of concord or agreement among the classes, stands at the northwest corner of the forum romanorum. The political interest in concord went hand in hand with a desire for proportion. Roman architecture rests on the concept of proportion; Roman life, except for the luxurious excesses of certain emperors, also had proportion at its center. Horace, in one of his odes, calls upon a friend to observe the aurea modiocritas, or the "golden mean." This view is synonymous with temperance, which, along with fortitude, justice, and prudence, was held in high esteem not only by the Romans but also by their Christian successors.

    6. Everyday Life in Rome For both social groups, life was “nasty, brutish, and short” (World Literature Online). The lower classes were “clients,” a little better than slaves of the upper classes, who owned all of the buildings and exercised all of the power. The plebeians worked for the noblemen in their mines, apartment buildings, and trading ships. The nobility liked to maintain a slight relationship with the workers in order to “keep an eye on” their investments.

    7. Feminae Romanae Although women were not considered to be citizens, they were important to society as a whole. Because patricians disliked conducting business, household accounts were handled by the family matron. Women were expected to carry out their “duties and reflect Roman virtues-the same virtues demanded in men. Significantly, women were the holders of one of the most cherished symbols of the Roman state: The sacred hearth flame was maintained by the Vestal Virgins, who also held the power to pardon any accused or sentenced criminal” (World Literature Online).

    8. Roman Women (continued) For specifics on Roman women, visit the Diotima Web site at: http://www.stoa.org/diotima/

    9. Education of Women Women did not enjoy the same privileges as their male counterparts; hey received their education at home, in preparation to become wives, household managers, and keepers of the hearth. They were evidently encouraged to write. Above is an ancient Roman fresco portrait of a young woman with stylus. Catullus, one of the earliest contributors of lyric poetry, was deeply influenced by the poems of Sappho, the Greek female poet. http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/roman_women_print.html

    10. Literary Contributions Catullus: wrote lyric love poetry modeled on the works of the Greek poet, Sappho. Ovid: most famous work, The Metamorphoses, an epic-length poetic work of 15 books.

    11. Literary Contributions (continued) Petronius: most famous work is Satyricon, a very long satire of which only fragments survive. It combines the most refined language with the bawdiest slang. Petronius seems to enjoy the blending of high and low diction and of multiple genres; he uses proverbs, character sketches, anecdotes, verse, and extended narrative to tell the adventures of three young men as they take the road.

    12. Literary Contributions (concluded) Virgil: most famous work is the Aeneid, the epic story of the hero Aeneas and the founding of Rome.

    13. Works Cited Davis, et. al. The Bedford Anthology of World Literature. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006. http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/worldlit/default.asp?b=1&c=&r=&i=&uid=0&rau=0

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