Culture of ancient Rome.docx

1、Culture of ancient RomeCulture of ancient RomeFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, searchJulius Caesar, from the bust in the British Museum, in Cassells History of England (1902).Ancient Roman culture evolved throughout the almost 1200-year history of that civilization. The term

2、 refers to the culture of the Roman Republic, later the Roman Empire, which, at peak, covered an area from Cumbria and Morocco to the Euphrates.Life in ancient Rome revolved around the city of Rome, its famed seven hills, and its monumental structures such as the Flavian Amphitheatre (now called the

3、 Colosseum), the Forum of Trajan and the Pantheon. The city also had several theaters, gymnasiums, and many taverns, baths and brothels. Throughout the territory under ancient Romes control, residential architecture ranged from very modest houses to country villas, and in the capital city of Rome, t

4、here were imperial residences on the elegant Palatine Hill, from which the word palace is derived. The vast majority of the population lived in the city center, packed into insulae (apartment blocks).The city of Rome was the largest megalopolis of that time, with a population that may well have exce

5、eded one million people, with a high end estimate of 3.5 million and a low end estimate of 450,000. The public spaces in Rome resounded with such a din of hooves and clatter of iron chariot wheels that Julius Caesar had once proposed a ban on chariot traffic at night. Historical estimates indicate t

6、hat around 30 percent of population under the jurisdiction of the ancient Rome lived in innumerable urban centers, with population of at least 10,000 and several military settlements, a very high rate of urbanization by preindustrial standards. The most urbanized part of the empire was Italy, which

7、had an estimated rate of urbanization of 32%, the same rate of urbanization of England in 1800. Most Roman towns and cities had a forum and temples and same type of buildings, on a smaller scale, as found in Rome. The large urban population required an endless supply of food which was a complex logi

8、stical task, including acquiring, transporting, storing and distribution of food for Rome and other urban centers. Italian farms supplied vegetables and fruits, but fish and meat were luxuries. Aqueducts were built to bring water to urban centers and wine and oil were imported from Hispania, Gaul an

9、d Africa.There was a very large amount of commerce between the provinces of the Roman Empire since its transportation technology was very efficient. The average costs of transport and the technology were comparable with 18th century Europe. The later city of Rome did not fill the space within its an

10、cient aurelian walls until after 1870.Eighty percent of the population under the jurisdiction of ancient Rome lived in the countryside in settlements with less than 10 thousand inhabitants. Landlords generally resided in cities and their estates were left in the care of farm managers. The plight of

11、rural slaves was generally worse than their counterparts working in urban aristocratic households. To stimulate a higher labor productivity most landlords freed a large numbers of slaves and many received wages. Some records indicate that as many as 42 people lived in one small farm hut in Egypt, wh

12、ile six families owned a single olive tree.citation needed . Such a rural environment continued to induce migration of population to urban centers until the early 2nd century, when the urban population stopped growing and started to decline.Starting in the middle of the second century BC, in every a

13、spect of the private culture of the upper classes, Greek culture was increasingly in ascendancy, in spite of tirades against the softening effects of Hellenized culture from the conservative moralists. By the time of Augustus, cultured Greek household slaves taught the Roman young (sometimes even th

14、e girls); chefs, decorators, secretaries, doctors, and hairdressersall came from the Greek East. Greek sculptures adorned Hellenistic landscape gardening on the Palatine or in the villas, or were imitated in Roman sculpture yards by Greek slaves. The Roman cuisine preserved in the cookery books ascr

15、ibed to Apicius is essentially Greek. Roman writers disdained Latin for a cultured Greek style. Only in law and governance was the Italic nature of Romes accretive culture supreme.Against this human background, both the urban and rural setting, one of historys most influential civilizations took sha

16、pe, leaving behind a cultural legacy that survives in part today.edit Social structureMain article: Social class in ancient RomeThe center of the early social structure, dating from the time of the agricultural tribal city state, was the family, which was not only marked by blood relations but also

17、by the legally constructed relation of patria potestas. The Pater familias was the absolute head of the family; he was the master over his wife (if she was given to him sub manu, otherwise the father of wife retained patria potestas), his children, the wives of his sons (again if married sub manu wh

18、ich became rarer towards the end of the Republic), the nephews, the slaves and the freedmen (liberated slaves, the first generation still legally inferior to the freeborn), disposing of them and of their goods at will, even having them put to death. Roman law recognized only patrician families as le

19、gal entities.Slavery and slaves were part of the social order. The slaves were mostly prisoners of war. There were slave markets where they could be bought and sold. Roman law was not consistent about the status of slaves, except that they were considered like any other moveable property. Many slave

20、s were freed by the masters for fine services rendered; some slaves could save money to buy their freedom. Generally mutilation and murder of slaves was prohibited by legislation, although outrageous cruelty continued.1Apart from these families (called gentes) and the slaves (legally objects, mancip

21、ia i.e. kept in the masters hand) there were Plebeians that did not exist from a legal perspective. They had no legal capacity and were not able to make contracts, even though they were not slaves. To deal with this problem, the so-called clientela was created. By this institution, a plebeian joined

22、 the family of a patrician (in a legal sense) and could close contracts by mediation of his patrician pater familias. Everything the plebeian possessed or acquired legally belonged to the gens. He was not allowed to form his own gens.The authority of the pater familias was unlimited, be it in civil

23、rights as well as in criminal law. The kings duty was to be head over the military, to deal with foreign politics and also to decide on controversies between the gentes. The patricians were divided into three tribes (Ramnenses, Titientes, Luceres).During the time of the Roman Republic (founded in 50

24、9 BC) Roman citizens were allowed to vote. These included patricians and plebeians. Women, slaves, and children were not allowed to vote.There were two assemblies, the assembly of centuries (comitia centuriata) and the assembly of tribes (comitia tributa), which were made up of all the citizens of R

25、ome. In the comitia centuriata the Romans were divided according to age, wealth and residence. The citizens in each tribe were divided into five classes based on property and then each group was subdivided into two centuries by age. All in all, there were 373 centuries. Like the assembly of tribes,

26、each century had one vote. The Comitia Centuriata elected the praetors (judicial magistrates), the censors, and the consuls.The comitia tributa comprised thirty-five tribes from Rome and the country. Each tribe had a single vote. The Comitia Tributa elected the Quaestors (financial magistrates) and

27、the patrician Curule Aedile.Over time, Roman law evolved considerably, as well as social views, emancipating (to increasing degrees) family members.edit Customs and daily lifeLife in the ancient Roman cities revolved around the Forum, the central business district, where most of the Romans would go

28、for marketing, shopping, trading, banking, and for participating in festivities and ceremonies. The Forum was also a place where orators would express themselves to mould public opinion, and elicit support for any particular issue of interest to them or others. Before sunrise, children would go to s

29、chools or tutoring them at home would commence. Elders would dress, take a breakfast by 11 oclock, have a nap and in the afternoon or evening would generally go to the Forum. Going to a public bath at least once daily was a habit with most Roman citizens. There were separate baths for men and women.

30、 The main difference was that the womens baths were smaller than the mens, and did not have a frigidarium (cold room) or a palaestra (exercise area).Different types of outdoor and indoor entertainment, free of cost, were available in ancient Rome. Depending on the nature of the events, they were sch

31、eduled during daytime, afternoons, evenings or late nights. Huge crowds gathered at the Colosseum to watch events like gladiators, combats between men, or fights between men and wild animals. The Circus Maximus was used for chariot racing.Life in the countryside was slow but lively, with numerous lo

32、cal festivals and social events. Farms were run by the farm managers, but estate owners would sometimes take a retreat to the countryside for rest, enjoying the splendor of nature and the sunshine, including activities like fishing, hunting, and riding. On the other hand, slave labor slogged on cont

33、inuously, for long hours and all seven days, and ensuring comforts and creating wealth for their masters. The average farm owners were better off, spending evenings in economic and social interactions at the village markets. The day ended with a meal, generally left over from the noon time preparations.edit Clothing