Classics 270/History 370: Roman History

Spring 2004
Beth Severy-Hoven, Macalester College

The Challenge of Ancient History, The Romans & their Monarchy

Questions: Why do we study history? Why did Livy study history? How should we evaluate Livy as a source?

• On Studying History: Using Historical Sources, Need for Source Criticism, Advice to History Undergrads from Gerald W. Schlabach
• The Monarchy: Jones pp. 1-10, Livy, Preface and on Tarquinius Superbus and Lucretia (1.57-2.1)

The Republic & the Struggle of the Orders

Questions: What type of society can we reconstruct from the surviving Twelve Tables? What is the relationship of that world to Livy's story?

• Jones pp. 8-13
• The Twelve Tables: Introduction, Translation
• Livy's account of the Twelve Tables, 3.31-55

Military Expansion & the Roman Army

Questions: How did Rome's rapid military expansion affect the developing state? How was the military built into Roman society? What effects might we anticipate this to have had?

Political Structures and Realities

Questions: Sketch an outline of Roman republican political structures based on Jones. Based on Cicero, what influenced voting in these electoral and legislative assemblies?

Roman Religion

Questions: How were Roman social, political and religious systems interrelated during the republic? As an example, what worried the Romans so much about the cult of Bacchus?

• M. Beard, J. North & S. Price, "The Priests and Religious Authority," "Gods and Goddesses," and "Religion in Action" from chapter 1 of Religions of Rome, Vol. 1, Cambridge, 1998, pp. 18-54. (electronic reserve)
• Livy's account of the Senatorial Decree on Bacchus Followers

The Roman Family

Questions: What lines might we draw between Roman family structures and socio-political structures? How do these systems work together?

• Jones pp. 208-234
• Cato the Elder On Farming, Preface and paragraphs 1-2, 5, 142-143
• Andrew Wallace-Hadrill, "Reading the Roman House" in Houses and Society in Pompeii and Herculaneum Princeton, 1994, pp. 3-16 (electronic reserve)

Slavery & Other Statuses

Questions: What are some key status groups into which Roman society was divided? How were these statuses defined, claimed or enforced?

• Jones pp. 145-172
• D'Ambra pp. 39-57

Roman Imperialism

Outline assigned article. Prepare a one-sentence summary for class.

Why do you think the Romans fought so many wars during the republic?

1. John Rich, "Fear, Greed and Glory: The Causes of Roman War Making in the Middle Republic," in Roman Imperialism, ed. C.B. Champion, Blackwell, 2004, pp. 46-67. (electronic reserve)
   OR
2. Keith Hopkins, "Conquerors and Slaves: The Impact of Conquering an Empire on the Political Economy of Italy" Conquerors and Slaves, 1978. (electronic reserve)

• Jones pp. 25-35.
• Selection from Appian Civil Wars
• Plutarch Life of Tiberius

Catilinarian Conspiracy, I

Questions: What evidence does Cicero present concerning the conspiracy? How does his speech to the people differ from those delivered to the senate?

• Jones pp. 39-40
• Cicero's 1st, 3rd and 4th Orations against Catiline (Cicero, Selected Political Speeches, pp. 71-93, 109-45)

Catilinarian Conspiracy, II

Questions: How does Sallust's presentation of these events differ from Cicero's? Why?

Julius Caesar: Man & Myth

Questions: How did Caesar's story change over the time these various documents were written? What questions can each source productively be used to address?

• Jones, pp. 41-44
• Cicero, Selected Letters 22-30 & 36
• Caesar, chapters 1-18 ONLY of his Civil Wars
• Suetonius' Life of Julius Caesar

Cleopatra & the Triumvirs

Questions: What are Plutarch's sources of information? How useful is he as a source on Cleopatra, Octavian and Antony?

• Jones, pp. 45-48
• Plutarch's Life of Antony

Augustus: Introduction

Questions: How does Augustus present himself and what he had accomplished? Did later commentators agree with his self-presentation?

Augustan Social Legislation

Questions: What are the key provisions of the laws? What did their author aim to achieve? What is Galinsky's explanation for Augustus' persistent interest in these statutes, even in the face of strong opposition? What is your explanation?

• Selections from Augustus' marriage laws and law on adultery, as well as later legal commentary (Lefkowitz and Fant, Women's Life in Greece and Rome, pp. 102-11, e-reserve)
• Horace, Ode 3.6
• K. Galinsky, "The Legislation on Morals and Marriage," in Augustan Culture, 1996, pp.128-40 (e-reserve)

Augustan Imagery &
The Grain Supply

Questions: How does this information change the way you think about the empire? How do the authors present the effects of empire on different social groups?

1. P. Zanker, "The Augustan Program of Cultural Renewal" from The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus, 1988, pp. 136-66 (e-reserve)
   OR
2. G. Aldrete, "Feeding the City" from Life, Death and Entertainment in the Roman Empire, 1999, pp. 171-204 (e-reserve)

Nero

Questions: How do Suetonius and Tacitus present Nero? Why?

• Jones, pp. 60-80
• Suetonius, Life of Nero
• Tacitus on the murder of Agrippina (Annals Book XIV, 1-16)
• Tacitus' description of Vespasian being proclaimed emperor by his legions
• Inscription on Powers of Vespasian

Romans & Jesus Followers

Questions: How does Paul present his community relative to Roman authority? How has the presentation of Paul changed by the time Acts was recorded? Who are the heroes and villains of the story? Why?

• Paul, First Corinthians (e-reserve)
• Luke (?), Acts (e-reserve)

Romans & Josephus

Questions: How does Josephus present himself and his community relative to Roman authority? Who are the heroes and villains of his story? Why?

• Josephus, Autobiography 1-5, 74-76 (that is, read only these paragraphs of the Autobiography)
• Josephus, Jewish Wars preface, book 5, 6.1.2, 6.1.5-6, 6.2.1 (that is, read in book 6 only chapter one paragraph 2, chapter one paragraphs five to six, and chapter two paragraph one)

• excerpt from Gibbon's Decline and Fall
• Bruce Bartlett's economic analysis of Rome's "fall"
• Select Quotations from modern scholars