The ancient society of Rome was quite violent. Romulus and Remus, the founding myth of Rome, gives a good example of how violent Romans were. Romulus and Remus were said to be the sons of the Roman god of war, Mars. The myth also states that both brothers were raised by a female wolf. Wolves are known for having a violent nature and a pack hierarchy. The myth ends with Romulus killing off Remus, becoming the first king of Rome. This myth resembles the warlike and violent society of Rome by showing that Romans will do anything for power even going as far as killing kinsmen. Another huge factor that went towards the violent nature of Rome was the Colosseum. Of course it was just entertainment to the Romans. The Colosseum not only entertained the citizens, but it emphasized punishments for criminals, war prisoners, and traitors. Watching a lions eat somebody to pieces or a gladiator kill someone for fun is a pretty good incentive not to steal or go against the Emperor. The Colosseum was also home to Roman gladiators. Gladiators fought in the fights to the death to entertain the citizens of Rome. Executions were …show more content…
There are many famous pieces of written work that come from Greece and Rome, some of the most famous were poems. Homer is the most famous Greek poet when thinking of Greek writing. His most famous poems are the Iliad and the Odyssey, both very long poems telling stories based around Greek myths and the Grecian culture. What is considered the national epic of Rome, “The Aeneid” was actually a piece based on Homer’s “Odyssey” and “Iliad” written by the poet Virgil. Virgil is seen as one of Rome’s greatest poets, and even today Western literature is influenced by his work. Rome and Greece were very influential with their different types of arts, which includes architecture and
The Greek interest in philosophy led to asking questions about the world and therefore intellectual discoveries. Mathematic contributions included the works of Pythagoras and Euclid. Greek science however did not make as much advancement. Roman scholars contributed political theory. Romans also contributed their engineering and architecture, which is still iconic today. They managed to create buildings that were incredibly structurally sound. Art and literature was also a large part of Mediterranean culture. Artistic contributions account for much of what has been preserved from Greco-Roman
Ancient Rome produced a number of literary geniuses, which included Marcus Cicero, Horace, and Virgil. The following excerpt from The Humanistic Tradition describes one of Virgil’s most famous works, “The Aeneid was not the product of an oral tradition, as were the Homeric epics: rather, it is a literary epic . . . No summary of the Aeneid can represent the monumental impact of a work that would become the foundation for the education of the Latin language” (Fiero 146). Ancient Roman works such as The Aeneid have had a profound influence on countless writers, poets, and literary scholars including Shakespeare, James Joyce, and Robert Graves. These ancient civilizations also made a variety of other contributions to western civilization.
Greece is much accredited for their influence on Roman art. Greek influence spread throughout Sicily and Italy by the end of the 4th century. Greek artists were hired by Romans and ultimately the Romans adopted many of their techniques. Art for the Romans took on a completely new dimension than had for any other culture in the past. Art to them was for decoration. No longer was art a medium to express religion or love for one’s country.
This theory was both mentally and physically destructive to Rome. Every day, Roman citizens would spend their time in the Colosseum to watch other people fight and die. They saw the gladiators fight and kill for survival, and soon, no one thought there was any value in other lives - or anything wrong with murder. Due to this way of thinking, the streets were dangerous, as they were filled with violence. Another issue caused by the decline in morals and values was the difference between the rich and the poor. Upperclassmen would throw extravagant parties with equally extravagant amounts of food. In fact, those at such a party would eat until they became sick. And even when that happened, they would keep eating. Meanwhile, on the streets, those in the lower class would be starving to death. People were dying - in the Colosseum, on the streets, in the military - but no one cared. The decline in morals and values may be second, but it still was
Many of Rome’s best writers, which includes, Horace, Virgil, Ovid, and Livy, produced many masterpieces. “Rome became the economic, political, and cultural capital of the entire western world” (Ushistory). Secondly, Pax Romana is important to world history because it was a time when the empire
They even aided the development of our modern day alphabet. Essentially, most of the more famous Ancient Greek writers were philosophers and/or “lovers of wisdom”. For example: Plato, Aristotle, Anaximander, Pythagoras, Empedocles, and a few others. Though, another quite famous writer was Homer. He was known for his epic poetry (poetry portraying the story of heroes) but was more of a poet than a philosopher. Homer’s most known works are the Iliad and The Odyssey, which greatly inspired other poets as time went on. These two epic’s contained history, fiction, and mythology, which are some of the greatly popular genres of today's writing. Also, Ancient Greece gave us the first comedies, tragedies, playwrights, theatre's, and theatrical
Romans borrowed Greek gods and myths, the Greek alphabet, Greek literature, and Greek architecture and incorporated them into Roman culture.
Rome was founded in 753 BC by twin brothers, their names were Romulus and Remus. Rome was founded on the Palatine Hill. Rome was founded for people to have a good life and a good environment to live. People believe that Romulus and Remus, kids of the God of War, Mars. The children were raised by wolves, not their father.
The decline in moral values in ancient Rome was much like the Unites States today. Crimes made the streets extremely unsafe and gladiator fights were exceedingly popular. This isn’t much different from what we see today. Crime rates in the U.S are continuing to rise, and many people enjoy observing violence, such as gory movies, boxing, and video games that encourage fighting. There were 32,000 prostitutes in Rome, and there are more than 100,000 in the Unites
When talking about the culture in ancient Greece and Rome we are talking about two cultures that have had a major impact on today’s society. We are also talking about two cultures that have highly similar ways of life and or beliefs. One thing that both cultures had in common was that they believed in all the same gods. Although they did have different names for some gods, they all believed in what each god stood for and the myths that they had. For example, the Greek’s called one god Zeus while the Romans called him Jupiter. Another similarity between Greece and Rome was that they both practiced agriculture. Not only did both nations both practice agriculture but they even grew some of the same crops. A few example of crops that both the Romans and Greeks grew are barley, grapes, olives, wheat and so much more. Agriculture in Rome and Greece was essential to anybody was able to grow them. For
The Romans borrowed almost all of its mythology from Greece. The only thing the Romans changed was the names of the Greek gods. And the Greek gods lasted much longer Greece. That is another reason Greece was better than Rome.
Many often lump Greek and Roman culture into one movement. The Greeks were an influence on the Roman Empire in everything from their art, architecture, and mathematics to their political structure. Though they are separated by over 500 years, the building of the Parthenon and Pantheon were each hugely significant architectural strides for each culture. Each has their similarities, as well as differences. On a whole, they set the way for the architects of the future with their vision.
The two ancient civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome were the best of the best during their time periods. Ancient Greece began around 2000 B.C. by the inhabitants known as the Mycenaean’s, followed by the Minoans. The Minoans built the foundation of Greece. The Roman Empire was founded around 753 B.C. by the two twins, Romulus and Remus. Romulus ended up killing Remus and built the city of Rome on one of seven rolling hills. Architecture was very important to both civilizations and they were always trying to out due the other. The architectural style of the Ancient Greeks and Romans was overall constructed and used differently.
Classical Greece and Rome are two main cultures in European history, they both influenced today's society tremendously through their similarities and differences. Some of their similarities and differences included how they ran their government, how they expressed themselves through art, and what they believed for a religion.
Virgil came to be regarded as one of Rome's greatest poets. His Aeneid can be considered a national epic of Rome and has been extremely popular from its publication to the present day.