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Love and the Good Life in the Roman Republic

Jeffrey L. Richey, Ph.D.

GSTR 220-BWestern Traditions I

Berea College

Fall 2003

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FOUNDATIONS OF ROMAN CIVILIZATION

The Italian peninsula:1. Easy access to maritime trade routes2. Climate and topography favorable for

agriculture3. Central location in ancient

Mediterranean world

First settlers of Italy:1. Greeks in south (700s BCE) – introduce

alphabet, olive and vine cultivation, arts and literature

2. Etruscans in north (600s) – establish models for social and political organization

3. Romans in center (500s) – develop engineering and military techniques

By 500s, village of Rome becomes urbanized polis

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THE ROMAN REPUBLIC (509-31 BCE)

Centuriate Assembly makes laws and elects leaders:

1. Consuls (2) – chosen annually; directed government and military

2. Praetor – appointed by consuls to administer justice

300-member Senate advises AssemblyPower restricted to patricians (male aristocrats), but later extended to plebeians (non-patrician males)Republican Rome in constant conflict with neighbors because of expansionist policies

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Extent of Roman Territory, c. 44 BCE

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ROMAN SOCIETY AND SPIRITUALITY

Dominant value: pietas (dutiful performance of social and spiritual obligations)Roman religion:

1. Polytheistic – Greek and Roman deities seen as interchangeable; amalgamated into one pantheon

2. Pluralistic – religious diversity generally tolerated, unless seen as threat to stability of state

3. Patriotic – religious activity intended to secure blessings of gods for the state

4. Patriarchal – organized around male authorities (pontiff, priest; paterfamilias, male head of household)

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ROMAN PHILOSOPHYWhile most Romans regard religion as the ancient source of Rome’s power and prosperity, some are skeptical about, or even critical of, the popular religion maintained by the stateMany educated Roman men turn to Greek-inspired philosophy for practical wisdom (prudentia)Most popular philosophical movements in Republican Rome:

1. Epicureanism2. Stoicism

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EPICUREANISMFounded by Epicurus of Athens (341-270 BCE), Greek teacher who established “The Garden,” a philosophical school/communityEpicurean views of:

1. Fate – no such thing; everything occurs completely by chance interactions in a purely physical universe

2. God(s) – no active role in human affairs; may not exist at all

3. Happiness – defined as freedom from anxiety; best achieved through avoidance of public responsibility, simple living, and cultivation of friendship (not romance)

“Of all the things which… produce the blessedness of the complete life, by far the greatest is the possession of friendship.”

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STOICISMFounded by Zeno of Citium (335-263 BCE), Greek philosopher who taught beneath Stoai (porches) in public spacesStoic views of:

1. Fate – determined by the logos (reason) of the universe, thus natural and acceptable

2. God(s) – identical with logos, nature, and one’s individual intellect

3. Happiness – defined as preservation of one’s natural state; best achieved through obedience to God/logos/nature/fate

4. “The virtue of the happy man and the smooth current of life [is] … the harmony of the spirit dwelling in the individual man with the will of him who orders the universe.”

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TITUS LUCRETIUS CARUS(96-55 BCE)

Roman poet and Epicurean philosopher

Little known about his life

Author of De Rerum Natura (On the Nature of Things), a comprehensive account of the universe from Epicurean view

As Epicurean, committed to fully naturalistic explanation of universe

Holds conventional Roman religion in low regard, because of his view that it reinforces both fear and desire – the twin obstacles to happiness for an Epicurean

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LUCIUS ANNAEUS SENECA(4 BCE-65 CE)

Spanish-born Roman writer, politician, and Stoic philosopherExiled several times for political reasonsBecomes praetor in 49 CE and tutor to future emperor Nero, who later forces him to commit suicide as punishment for alleged involvement in conspiracyAuthor of multiple works, including dramas, poems, philosophical dialogues, and speechesAs Stoic, values self-suffiency and questions “unnatural” attachments to things outside oneself, but values association with moral mentors

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