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Overview
Who were the ancient Romans? Views of Rome addresses this question by offering a collection of thirty-five annotated excerpts from Greek prose authors. As Adam Serfass explains in his introduction, these authors’ characterizations of the Romans run the gamut from fellow Hellenes, civilizers, and peacemakers to barbarians, boors, and warmongers.
Although many of the authors featured in this volume—including Augustus, Cassius Dio, Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Eusebius, Josephus, Julian, Libanius, Plutarch, Polybius, Strabo, and the writers of the New Testament—are important sources for Roman civilization, their written works are rarely presented in accessible Greek-language editions. These authors wrote in a variety of styles and dialects, and this collection enables readers to experience the range of expression the Greek language makes possible.
Views of Rome is divided into five parts spanning early Rome through late antiquity. Within these parts, each prose selection is prefaced with a description of the featured author and the larger work from which the excerpt is drawn, as well as suggestions for further reading in English. The Greek passages themselves are accompanied by notes that provide crucial assistance for understanding grammar and vocabulary, thus enabling students to read the language with greater speed, accuracy, and nuance.
Designed for advanced undergraduate- and graduate-level readers of Greek, this student-friendly book bridges the worlds of Greece and Rome and inspires discussion of identity, empire, religion, and politics—matters much debated in classical antiquity and in the present day.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780806160887 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | University of Oklahoma Press |
| Publication date: | 01/18/2018 |
| Series: | Oklahoma Series in Classical Culture , #55 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 336 |
| File size: | 6 MB |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
INTRODUCTION
Who were the ancient Romans? This book presents thirty-five annotated selections from authors writing in Greek that address this question, one that is germane to broader issues within the discipline of Classics and beyond, such as identity and imperialism. The answers of these authors are legion: they characterize the Romans as barbarians, fellow Hellenes, civilizers, rubes, sybarites, money-grubbers, divine agents, Satan's spawn, peacemakers, warmongers, persecutors, traditionalists, innovators, copycats, bureaucrats, technocrats, syncretists, multiculturalists. In short, the authors' viewpoints are far from monolithic; they are diverse. This book seeks to make these authors, who bridge the worlds of Greece and Rome, accessible to advanced undergraduate and graduate-level students of ancient Greek. Since these authors write in a variety of styles, dialects, genres, and periods, it should also help students appreciate more fully the range of expression possible in the language.
The book assembles passages that are of paramount importance for understanding Roman civilization and yet are mostly unavailable in student-friendly editions: for example, Dionysius of Halicarnassus on the founding of Rome (A3.2–A6); Polybius on the city's tripartite government (Senate, magistrates, people) and the state funerals of its great leaders (B1–B2); Cassius Dio on the accession of the first emperor, Augustus (C2); Eusebius on the emperor Constantine's endorsement of Christianity (E1–E3); Procopius on Rome's deliverance from destruction on the cusp of the Middle Ages (E7). Authors who may be less familiar but nonetheless offer valuable perspectives are also included, such as Phlegon of Tralles (B5), Philo of Alexandria (C4), and the emperor Julian (E4). With more than a dozen selections related to polytheism, Judaism, and Christianity, including multiple passages from Josephus (D3–D6) and the New Testament (D1–D2), students of ancient religion should also discover much of interest.
This reader has been designed so that artifacts and monuments from classical antiquity may be studied together with many of the texts. For instance, when reading Strabo on the sack and looting of Corinth (B7), one could examine the temples of republican Rome, many of which were built from the spoils won by Roman generals campaigning in the eastern Mediterranean. When reading the Greek version of Augustus's Res Gestae (C3), preserved in inscriptions from Asia Minor, one could study the Roman monuments described in the text as well as the architectural settings in which the inscriptions were displayed. When reading about the Whore of Babylon portrayed in the New Testament book of Revelation (D2), one could study the representation of the goddess Roma, found on a coin circulating in Asia Minor, that may have inspired the image. The passages here may be fruitfully read on their own or in conjunction with an examination of material culture from the ancient Mediterranean.
HOW THIS READER IS ORGANIZED
The thirty-five selections in this volume are grouped into five parts (A through E) with seven assignments in each (A1–A7, B1–B7, etc.). The five parts are part A, Early Rome; part B, Expansion in the Republic; part C, From Republic to Empire; part D, Jews and Christians; and part E, Late Antiquity. Selections are assigned to sections according to the dates of the events described rather than when an author was writing. Within each part, the selections are typically arranged chronologically. Some exceptions have been made, however, so that contrasting texts appear sequentially: for example, Plutarch's philhellene Flamininus and antihellene Cato the Elder sit side by side (B3–B4), and Boudicca's fiery denunciation of Rome is followed by Aelius Aristides's panegyrical praise of the empire (C5–C6). It is likely that thirty-five assignments are too many to be covered in a single semester: this surfeit allows the instructor to select passages in order to shape the course as she wishes — to emphasize certain themes, for example, or to concentrate on certain time periods.
Each selection typically includes one Greek passage; occasionally, shorter, related excerpts are presented together, as when two snippets from the gospel of Luke are juxtaposed with one from Paul's letter to the Christians in Rome (D1.1–2). Important writers such as Polybius (A7.2, B1–B2) and Plutarch (B3–B4, C7) appear in multiple selections: this allows instructors to delve more deeply into these authors and acclimates students to their prose. The varying lengths of the passages reflect the varying difficulty of the authors. Each selection is appropriate for an hour-long class; for a longer session, an instructor could supplement the Greek with a discussion based on one or more of the additional readings recommended in the introduction to every selection.
The introductory paragraphs that precede each of the individual selections provide key information about the author and elucidate the immediate context within the work from which the excerpt is drawn. When possible, I briefly discuss the author's views of Rome as evinced in other parts of his oeuvre. Yet an effort is made not to reveal too much about the content of the selection, for in my experience those who have elected to study ancient Greek like to discover things for themselves. Spoilers are kept to a minimum. As noted, suggestions for further reading in English are provided at the end of the introduction to each selection: these may be longer portions of the text under study, book chapters, or journal articles. In making selections from the vast bibliography on the authors here represented, I kept the needs of the classroom in mind. I favored readings that were not only clear and informative but also relatively brief and likely to foster lively discussion. These suggestions offer guidance to students looking to dig deeper as well as to instructors looking for readings to complement the Greek assigned for class.
Then follows the Greek text itself, accompanied by lemmatic notes keyed to the section numbers of the Greek. These notes offer assistance with morphology (forms), syntax, and vocabulary. (Definitions are printed in italics; other information is in Roman type.) They regularly refer to portions of Smyth's Greek grammar and entries in Liddell, Scott, and Jones's unabridged Greek lexicon and other major dictionaries so that students may refresh their grammatical knowledge and deepen their vocabulary. These notes also comment from time to time on literary and historical matters. If the notes on a passage owe a special debt to a particular commentary, whether it is written in English or another language, I reference that work at the beginning of the notes.
RECURRING THEMES
This reader is polyphonic. It brings together the voices of Greek authors who lived across the Mediterranean — Greece, Asia Minor, the Levant, Egypt, Sicily, Italy — over a vast expanse of time. Most of the authors flourished between 200 B.C.E. and 400 C.E., though the inclusion of Herodotus (A3.1) and Procopius (E7) means that this reader encompasses nearly a millennium of Greek literature. Despite this geographical and chronological sweep, the authors in this volume share a common interest in Rome as the state that ruled or was soon to rule them. (Or, in two exceptional cases, as the state that they ruled, for two emperors are numbered among the authors.) Certain subjects thread through the selections. It may be helpful to consider these recurring themes here, before they are encountered severally in the individual passages. They are grouped below under one-word titles. Although this scheme is convenient, it is also artificial, in that many of the themes are interrelated and thus resist easy categorization, and reductionist, in that authors often treat them in subtle and complex ways. The goal here is to stimulate thought rather than provide definitive answers, so questions rather than statements predominate in the paragraphs below.
Empire
Polybius famously reckons that Rome came to dominate the inhabited world in a shade under fifty-three years (1.1.5). Rome's empire spanned three continents and lasted for centuries — until as late as 1453, by the reckoning of the great eighteenth-century historian Edward Gibbon, the year in which the fall of Constantinople marked the end of the eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire. How did the Romans, once just one among many peoples in Italy, come to control the Mediterranean? What explains the rapidity of Rome's rise and the durability of its rule? Should it be chalked up to t???, a word that could be translated as "luck," "fortune," or "providence"? Does geography — where Rome is sited, where Italy is located in the Mediterranean — play a role? Is the secret to Rome's success its military might, or its diplomatic savvy? Are the reasons for its rise to be sought in its social institutions or cultural characteristics, for example, its "absorbency," its capacity to adopt what's best from other peoples and to incorporate those it conquers into the state? Or is Rome's success really a matter of morals — of the virtue of its citizens, an enduring "national character" that is transmitted from generation to generation?
Politics
Or should Rome's success be attributed primarily to the nature of its government? Selections in this volume offer snapshots of Roman politics at key moments in the state's development: for example, Polybius as Rome faces dire circumstances during the Second Punic War (B1), Cassius Dio on the transition from republic to principate (C2), Eusebius on the emperor Constantine's decision to ally himself with the Christian god (E1–E3). How do authors make sense of Roman government through the analytical framework provided by Greek political thought and the vocabulary of Greek politics? For instance, is Rome, in fact, a p????, or something else? When Rome comes to be ruled by emperors, how should they be viewed? As philosopher-kings, bloodthirsty persecutors, distant figureheads? How does the character of individual emperors affect the empire? Is rule by one the best form of government? And in the administration of this vast monarchic state, what role should an ambitious Greek politician play?
Religion
In Rome, religion was intertwined with politics and indeed all aspects of life. Many of the authors excerpted in this book, including Polybius, Plutarch, Eusebius, and Libanius (A7, E1–E3, E5–E6), recognize that Rome's religion supported the state. According to these writers, how, exactly, does Rome's religious system foster social stability? Is Rome's rise the result of divine favor, which its religious system is designed to curry? How does Roman polytheism — at once conservative and innovative, inclusive and restrictive — make room for monotheistic Jews and Christians? Can the latter serve both God and the state? Can they pledge allegiance to emperors who are nearly gods on earth? When Christianity begins to supplant traditional religious practices, is the state weakened or strengthened?
Identity
Religion may serve as one among many constituents of a person's identity. Identity is a slippery and protean concept. For what is it that defines who we are? Do we have one identity, or several identities that we put on and lay aside according to circumstances? Many of the selections in this book evince a concern with questions of identity. Sometimes authors tackle such questions explicitly; at other times, the questions seem to bubble up while the writers are ostensibly focused on other matters. As the introductions to the individual passages make clear, the identities of the authors included in this reader are often complex. Through their varied backgrounds and experiences, they cross geographical, religious, linguistic, and cultural boundaries that turn out to be more permeable than might be assumed. The same author may be an "insider" in one way and an "outsider" in another.
One bundle of questions about identity concerns the Romans, both as individuals and as a people. What are the core components of Roman identity? In other words, what makes the Romans Roman? Are the Romans similar to or different from those groups with which the author self- identifies? Consider the traditional Greek binarism by which peoples are categorized as either Hellenes or barbarians. To which group should the Romans be assigned? If this binarism is (rightly) understood to be, in reality, a continuum, does that make things any easier? And how might the identity of an individual Roman differ from the Roman people's as a whole? In short, "categorizing" the Romans and interpreting their identity, both when viewed corporately and case by case, is a difficult business.
There is another bundle of questions related to Greek identity. Before introducing them, it should first be made clear: whereas all the authors here excerpted write in Greek, not all of them would identify as Greek, though many do. For the latter, what constitutes Greekness? How does Roman rule affect what it means to be Greek? Here much depends on when an author is writing. The perspective of an author like Polybius (A7.2, B1–B2), who not only witnesses but participates in the process by which Greece comes under Roman control in the second century B.C.E., is different from that of an author like Plutarch (B3–B4, C7), deeply Hellenic in his cultural outlook but living in a Greece that had been under Roman control for more than two centuries. How is Hellenic identity tied to ethnicity? To what extent is it grounded in common customs, such as similar ways of worshipping the gods, or in a shared set of cultural values? If the Romans share those values, does that mean that they are Greeks? In trying to make sense of the Romans, Greeks confront questions about their own identity.
Style
An author's identity is also shaped by the language and style in which he writes. This claim, too, warrants further explanation. There are many reasons why an author may write in a certain way. He may do so to align his work with that of an earlier author whom he sees as a model: for example, Cassius Dio (C2, C5) and Procopius (E7) sometimes channel the style of Thucydides, and Julian echoes that of Plato (E4). A later author may thus share in an earlier author's authority, as the writers of the New Testament (D1–D2) do when they adopt the distinctive idiom of the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, which itself imports the vocabulary, syntax, and style of the Hebrew original. Style may also reflect the conventions of a particular genre; hence Eusebius (E1–E3), in his laudatory biography of Constantine, employs the elevated, pleonastic style of panegyric. A particular style (or literary form) may serve as a rhetorical stratagem, as when the author of the martyrdom of Agape and her companions (D7) renders the exchange between prisoners and persecutors as dialogue, which lends verisimilitude and drama to the proceedings. But for our purposes, it may be most important to note that style is also influenced by the evolution of the Greek language over time, by linguistic trends that some have seen as reactions to Roman rule.
(Continues…)
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Table of Contents
List of Illustrations,
Acknowledgments,
Abbreviations and Acronyms,
Introduction,
PART A. EARLY ROME,
A1. Site of Rome: Strabo 5.3.7–8,
A2. A Sketch of the Etruscans: Diodorus Siculus 5.40,
A3. Origins of the Etruscans: Herodotus 1.94 and Dionysius of Halicarnassus Roman Antiquities 1.30.1–3,
A3.1. Herodotus 1.94,
A3.2. Dionysius of Halicarnassus Roman Antiquities 1.30.1–3,
A4. Rationalizing Rome's Past: Dionysius of Halicarnassus Roman Antiquities 1.84.1–5,
A5. Greek Rome: Dionysius of Halicarnassus Roman Antiquities 1.89–90.1,
A6. Inclusive Rome: Dionysius of Halicarnassus Roman Antiquities 2.15.1, 2.15.3–17.1,
A7. Religion: Plutarch Numa 8.1–3 and Polybius 6.56.6–12,
A7.1. Plutarch Numa 8.1–3,
A7.2. Polybius 6.56.6–12,
PART B. EXPANSION IN THE REPUBLIC,
B1. Secrets of Roman Success: Polybius 6.18, 52,
B2. Public Funerals: Polybius 6.53–54,
B3. Philhellene Flamininus: Plutarch Flamininus 10–11.2, 11.4,
B4. Antihellene Cato: Plutarch Cato the Elder 22–23.3,
B5. Prophecies of Roman Ruin: Phlegon of Tralles On Wondrous Things 3.3–8, 3.12,
B6. Rome as Ally: 1 Maccabees 8.1–16,
B7. Rapacious Romans: Strabo 8.6.23,
PART C. FROM REPUBLIC TO EMPIRE,
C1. Sulla Speaks at Ephesus: Appian Mithridatic Wars 61.250–63.261,
C2. First Augustan Settlement: Cassius Dio 53.16.4–17.3, 18.1–3,
C3. Augustus on Augustus: Res Gestae Divi Augusti 1–4, 13, 24, 34–35,
C4. Sound Emperor, Sound Empire: Philo Embassy to Gaius 2.8–3.21,
C5. Boudicca Bashes Rome: Cassius Dio 62.3–5,
C6. Aristides Praises Rome: Aelius Aristides On Rome 26 (14).96–101, 104,
C7. Serving Greece under Rome: Plutarch Political Precepts 17, 19,
PART D. JEWS AND CHRISTIANS,
D1. God and State: Luke 2.1–7, 20.20–26; Romans 13.1–7,
D1.1. Luke 2.1–7, 20.20–26,
D1.2. Romans 13.1–7,
D2. The Whore of Babylon: Revelation 17.1–18,
D3. Perils of War with Rome: Josephus Jewish War 2.355–357, 361, 390–402,
D4. The Temple Is Burned: Josephus Jewish War 6.249–270,
D5. Flavian Triumph I: Josephus Jewish War 7.123–141,
D6. Flavian Triumph II: Josephus Jewish War 7.142–162,
D7. Making Martyrs: Martyrdom of Agape, Irene, and Chione 1.2–2.1, 3–4,
PART E. LATE ANTIQUITY,
E1. Constantine's Vision I: Eusebius Life of Constantine 1.26–28,
E2. Constantine's Vision II: Eusebius Life of Constantine 1.29–32,
E3. Constantine's Vision III: Eusebius Life of Constantine 1.37–40,
E4. Constantine Reassessed: Julian Caesars 18, 30, 36–38,
E5. Defend Our Temples I: Libanius Oration 30.8–13,
E6. Defend Our Temples II: Libanius Oration 30.30–36,
E7. Belisarius Saves Rome: Procopius Wars 7.22.6–19,
Sources and Credits,