Roman amphitheater

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Roman amphitheater
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Early Roman Civilization

• (753 B.C.E. to 284 A.D.)

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Early Roman Civilization

• Three historical periods
• The Roman Monarchy (753 BCE to 509 BCE)
• The Roman Republic (509 BCE to 31 BCE)
• The Roman Empire (31 BCE to 248 AD)

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The Roman Republic

• The Early Republic (509-264 BCE) division of
  society into two classes, the aristocratic
  patricians and the plebeians
• The Middle Republic (264-133 BCE) the challenge
  of Carthage the Punic Wars (264-146 BCE).
• The Late Republic (133-31 BCE) the rise of the
  equestrian order, a social class who gained
  wealth during the Punic Wars.

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The Late Republic Julius Caesar, I

• Julius Caesar, an equestrian, was a major
  political figure from 60 to 44 BCE.
• He took his authority from the many titles and
  powers he held dictator for life, consul, and
  head of the armies.
• Future Roman emperors recognized him as their
  predecessor by calling themselves Caesar, or
  ruler.

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The Late Republic Julius Caesar, II

• On march 15, 44 BCE, a band of senatorial
  assassins murdered Caesar and Rome plunged into
  chaos.
• Caesars nephew and adopted son, Octavian,
  emerged as a new leader in 31 BCE. He was later
  called Augustus Caesar.
• With Octavian, we have the beginning of Pax
  Romana (Roman Peace) and the Roman Empire.
• During Octavians rule, patricians power
  decreased and equestrian power increased.

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Assassination of Julius Caesar
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Julius Caesar
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Circus Maximus
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Three Social Classes

• During Roman Republic and Empire, there were
  three distinct social classes
• The patrician (aristocracy)
• The equestrian (army)
• The plebian (common people)

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Roman culture

• Hellenistic culture became the foundation of
  Roman civilization.
• The Roman blend the utilitarian with the
  aesthetic.
• Fascination with the spectacle
• Architecture and sculpture are increasingly
  monumental and theatrical.

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Roman Religion

• The Romans were syncretists, blending different
  religions. From Egypt came the worship of Isis (a
  religion that promised immortality), from Persia
  they borrowed the cult of Mithra. They celebrated
  December 25th as Mithras birthday.

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Roman Literature

• The First Literary Period (250 to 31 BCE)
• The Second Literary Period (The Golden Age, 31
  BCE to 14 AD)
• The Third Literary Period (The Silver Age, 14 AD
  to 200 AD)

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Roman Literature The First Literary Period

• Lucretius in his book (On the Nature of Things)
  he defended Epicurianism that denied divine
  intervention in human affairs.
• Catullus love poetry
• Cicero letters, speeches, translations

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Cicero
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Cicero
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Roman Literature The Second Literary Period

• Virgil Aeneid imitates Homers The Odyssey
• Horace he created a new genre, the satire
• Ovid Art of Love, on how to seduce women. In
  Metamorphoses (Transformations) he revives Greek
  and Roman Myths.