During the days of Julius Caesar and immediately following his death, Rome began to adopt many of th - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

1 / 25
About This Presentation
Title:

During the days of Julius Caesar and immediately following his death, Rome began to adopt many of th

Description:

... great part by Rome's exposure to the concepts of the Epicureanism and Stoicism. The most renowned Roman supporter of Epicureanism was Lucretius (98-55 BC) who ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

Number of Views:32
Avg rating:3.0/5.0
Slides: 26
Provided by: midway
Category:

less

Transcript and Presenter's Notes

Title: During the days of Julius Caesar and immediately following his death, Rome began to adopt many of th


1
  • During the days of Julius Caesar and immediately
    following his death, Rome began to adopt many of
    the ideas of Greeks and became significantly more
    sophisticated. This was caused in great part by
    Romes exposure to the concepts of the
    Epicureanism and Stoicism.

2
  • The most renowned Roman supporter of
    Epicureanism was Lucretius (98-55 BC) who was the
    author of poetic book entitled On The Nature of
    Things.

3
  • Lucretius attempted to remove all supernatural
    elements from his explanation of the universe. He
    explained that the universe was comprised of
    atoms arranged in a nearly limitless array of
    forms.

4
  • Lucretius believed that there were gods, but
    stated that they were simply in a state of
    eternal peace and had no effect on mankind.

5
  • He believed that everything in the universe was
    a product of mechanical evolution.

6
  • Lucretius believed that there was no afterlife
    and that death brought the end to existence.

7
  • Although many found his ideas on nature quite
    harsh, his poetry is considered to be among the
    greatest ever written.
  • One of the basic aspects of this belief system
    was the concept of Live now for tomorrow you may
    die.

8
  • Stoicism was introduced to Rome in 40 B.C. and
    was quickly adopted by numerous people throughout
    Roman society.

9
  • The most famous adherent of Stoicism was Cicero
    who is known as The Father of Roman Eloquence

10
  • Ciceros ethical philosophy was based upon the
    Stoic premises that virtue is sufficient for
    happiness and that tranquility of mind is the
    highest good. He conceived of the ideal human as
    one who has been guided by reason to an
    indifference to sorrow and pain. (However, he
    diverged from Greek Stoics by having a very
    active political life.)

11
  • Cicero wrote in a rich Latin prose that has
    never been surpassed and his style of prose
    remains the standard by which all great
    compositions are judged.

12
  • Although not a great, original thinker, Cicero
    was the most influential Latin transmitter of
    ancient thought to the Medieval and modern
    European world.

13
  • Other great Roman writers of the Republic were
  • 1.)          Plautus who wrote rather ribald
    comedies.
  • 2.)          Catulls who wrote quite passionate
    love poems.
  • 3.)          Julius Caesar who wrote military
    treatises that are still taught in military
    schools to this day.

14
  • The 8 million people of Italy in 44 B.C. were
    divided into four main classes.

15
  • 1.)          Senatorial aristocracy (which had
    300 citizens and their families who made their
    livings as officeholders and owners of large
    estates.)

16
  • 2.)          The Equestrian class (lower class
    aristocrats who were not members of the Senate,
    but who had enough wealth to serve as cavalry in
    the Roman military.) These individuals were the
    ones who abused the lower classes the most as
    they served as money lenders who charged
    excessively for their services.

17
  • 3.) The Common citizen (This was the largest
    group and consisted primarily of independent
    farmers)

18
  • 4.)          Slaves (They were barely considered
    human and were often treated as mere animals.)
    The standard Roman policy was to get as much
    work out of them as possible and when they died
    of exhaustion replace them with new slaves.

19
  • The general condition of the Roman slave was
    horrendous and yet the majority of the work in
    Rome was done by slaves. They
  • 1.) Produced much of the food on the farms.
  • 2.)  Did the majority of the work in Roman shops
  • 3.) Served in a variety of services ranging from
    butlers to nurses, to even teachers. (some
    Romans even had slaves whose only job was care
    for his sandals or to give a rub down after a
    bath.)
  • 4.) Trained as entertainers to perform as
    gladiators or chariot drivers in the Roman
    circuses.

20
  • New religious ideas began to enter Rome around 44
    B.C. most which offered more hope and promise
    than the traditional Roman beliefs.

21
  • The Cult of Serapis (which was the Roman version
    of the Osiris cult from Egypt) offered the
    promise of immortality in paradise for those that
    lived a good life on earth.

22
  • The Cult of Mithraism was introduced from Persia
    and soon became the most popular cult in Rome.
    This cult practiced elaborate underground rites
    and promised paradise for the soul after death.

23
  • Prior to Caesars death in 44 B.C. he adopted his
    grandnephew Octavian as his sole heir. (When
    Caesar died Octavian was only 18).

24
  • When Caesar died Octavian was in Illyria (The
    Balkan Peninsula) and hastily returned to Rome to
    claim his inheritance. However, he was young and
    inexperienced so he was forced to join an
    alliance with Mark Antony and Lepidus creating
    what became known as the Second Triumvirate.

25
  • The Second Triumverate hunted down Caesars
    murderers and confiscated their belongings. These
    individuals were treated with great cruelty.
    (The most famous example of this cruelty was the
    death of Cicero who had not even taken part in
    the murder.) Cicero was captured as he was
    trying to flee Rome. His head and hands were cut
    off and placed above a rostra in the Roman
    Assembly so that all could behold as public
    speeches were given. This was done because
    Ciceros Phillipics were supposedly written to
    mock Mark Antony.
Write a Comment
User Comments (0)
About PowerShow.com