Have you often wondered why Rome and Greece were so similar? Well, this is because the Greeks influenced much of Roman culture. One way the Greeks influenced the Romans was with their literature. By studying the Greeks' literature, Romans created their own literary works. Another way the Greeks influenced the Romans was their studying of the sciences. Galen, a physician, and Ptolemy, an astronomer and mathematician, were two Greek men who made many advances in the sciences. Art was yet another way the Greeks influenced the Romans. Even though, in the end the Romans excelled in art compared to the Greeks, the Greeks were the ones who stirred up the love of art in the Romans. Lastly, the Greeks influenced the Romans in religious beliefs. They took on the idea of the mythical gods on Mount Olympus and used it with their nature gods. As you can see, Greece influenced the Roman culture. Without the Greeks' influence where would Roman culture be?
Something I found interesting in this weeks reading was two of greeks philosophies, Epicureanism and Stoicism. Epicureanism teaches that true happiness comes only as a man frees his mind from fear and his body from pain. Stoicism teaches that the highest good is the pursuit of the virtues of dignity, simplicity of life, courage, duty, and service to fellow men. The Romans did not find Greek philosophy very interesting. But they did find Epicureanism and Stoicism very practical for guid lines for their lives.
Hello all! The way I wrote my reading journal wouldn’t make sense to post just part of it, so here is a summary:
Just like genre popularity changes now-a-day’s, for example the recent craze of books including the zombie apocalypse compared to the previous craze of superheroes, genres in ancient Rome changed as well. First off we get Virgil, the “Homer of Rome” Who, just like Homer, focused on epic battle poems, glorifying Rome to her highest. Next is Horace, who also focused on epic battle poems but unlike Virgil mentioned the faults of Rome as well as her success. After that we get a big genre change. Ovid brings us from epic poems to romantic myths. Unfortunately for Ovid at the time of his writing the emperor was trying to straighten out the crooked morals of the Romans. Landing in his stories being banned from libraries and exiled from Rome. Which is most likely the reason for his works to be less known than Virgil and our next writer: Livy. Livy was a historian who changed the romantic genre to his 142 historical Roman volumes. (Which have been reported by some to be repetitive.) Following Livy is Juvenal, a pessimistic poet who longs for the return of the republic, he writes of the social problems Rome is suffering from. Then comes Plutarch, who wrote biographies comparing well known Greeks and Romans. However there is a vast difference in what genre is popular now and what was popular then. Our genre popularity is based on what people are enjoying reading and what is getting the best review. Genre popularity then was based on what poets and historians were writing. All I can say is I am glad that I live now so I can chose what I get to read. Instead only of having to read what authors are currently writing.
Oh and our Tangent List has gotten so long that it is now on the back cover of my notebook! -Sarah
Ok, I really enjoyed reading about Rome and Greece. I'm really glad that Greece influenced Rome to view things more beautifully rather than practically, because I believe that that is a really important thing for a culture to do. Also, when reading about the Roman Colosseum, I found sooo many connections to the Hunger Games. "The victors in these life-and-death contests became instant public heroes." This sentence could basically be used to describe either The Hunger Games or the Colosseum. That actually scares me quite a bit, because many people think the Hunger Games are super far-fetched and ridiculous, when really, they've already happened in history. If they've happened before, who's to say they won't happen again, if we let our country fall away towards that sort of barbaric lifestyle?
Also there's a character named Seneca in THG too... so...
The portion of this week’s reading I found most interesting was the destruction of Pompeii. Just thinking about how all those people were just going about their normal lives on August 24, 79 AD, not suspecting that they would never see tomorrow, is crazy to think about. It says in the reading that plaster casts were found portraying the final agonies of the citizens of Pompeii. I know their is a lot of death in history, and the people of Pompeii are a small group of people to die compared to other tragic events in history, but they still stand out to me.
Hey Betsy, your comment reminded me of the Bible verse:
"What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. Is there a thing of which it is said, “See, this is new”? It has been already in the ages before us. There is no remembrance of former things, nor will there be any remembrance of later things yet to be among those who come after."
I keep thinking how unfortunate it was that the Roman civilization was not founded on true Christianity. It was interesting to read about the grotesque gladiator fights and the many religions that circled around Rome at that time. The Romans would have people fight to the death in the Colosseum, and be devoured by lions or other wild animals. When I read about that, my horror of it was renewed, but even more so when I went on to read that the two purposes for these "games" was to occupy the unemployed masses of Roman citizens, and for Roman emperors to gain favor from the people. Having read and heard about the many martyrs of the faith who died in the Colosseum, it is so sad that the majority of the Roman populace supported this "amusement".
Reading about the poets was interesting. Virgil was the "Homer of the Romans". He wrote the Aeneid which was modeled after Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. Virgil wanted the Aeneid destroyed after he died, but his friends published it instead. After Virgil died his friend ,Horace, became the "Poet of the Augustan age". He praised Augustus would one of his poems. But he also warned the Romans about luxury and ease and praised simple virtues. Next was the poetry of Ovid. He wrote about mythology and love. I would enjoy reading about mythology. He took over two hundred myths and made them into one big story. Ovid became popular with the upper class because of his stories. However, Augustus wasn't pleased. He banned Ovid from three public libraries and eventually exiled him from the city. After Augustus died there was a poet named Juvenal who wrote about social problems with the empire and on loose morals.
Something I found to be of interest this week was the overview of Roman religious beliefs. In the early Republic, Romans worshipped the gods of nature. When they came into contact with the Greeks, they began to mix their gods with the mythological gods of Mount Olympus. But eventually, the Romans were filled with dissatisfaction. They soon turned to things like philosophy in their quest for true happiness. Philosophies like Epicureanism and Stoicism, also derived from the Greeks, became widely practiced. What strikes me most is how the Romans, like many other cultures, hopped from belief to belief, philosophy to philosophy. All without finding true fulfillment! Trying to “free your mind and body from pain,” and “pursuing courage, duty, and simplicity” are not necessarily bad things, until you are trying to put those things in the place of God. True happiness and fulfillment comes only from Him, and trying to fill the void with material things and vain philosophies will only leave us emptier. In the musical “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” Charlie Brown is trying to find happiness. After many mishaps and adventures gone wrong, he finally finds true contentment. At the end of the musical, in the song “happiness,” Charlie Brown sings the simple truth; “happiness is in God alone.” If only the Romans could have seen this!
I thought it was interesting to see the diversity of the different poets of ancient Rome. Virgil glorified the empire through his literary works and the Aeneid, giving the strong belief that Rome would one day rule the world. He was the most famous poet of his day. However, after his death his friend Horace became "The Poet of The Augustian Age." Like Virgil Horace also spoke of the glory of Rome,but he did not over look the problems of the empire. Then there was Ovid who wrote about mythology and not just Roman, but myths from all over the ancient world. These three men were all famous and well known poets in their time. Therefore which one was the best? I believe the Romans would have said Virgil and who could blame them? Someone who makes your empire look incredible and destined to rule the world? The Roman people were prideful and very proud of their land. They loved bloodshed and would not tolerate weakness. Therefore I do not think they would have particularly enjoyed Horace's points about Roman faults. To sum everything up, i thought it was fascinating how these three men were all famous poets and yet had very different styles, views on importance and effect on the people of Rome
It amazes me how much Greek culture affected Rome. Roman writers copied Greek literature, and Roman artists copied Greek statues. Greek scientists, like Galen, and Ptolemy affected Roman science. The Romans adopted the gods that the Greeks worshipped, and gave them different names. When they were no longer satisfied with these gods, they turned to philosophy. Two Greek philosophies, Epicureanism and Stoicism, influenced Roman thinking. Even though the Romans considered themselves to be the rulers of the world, they didn't discount the ideas of others. They saw value in aspects of Greek culture, and used it for their own. That's a sign of a good leader; someone who takes authority, but isn't afraid to acknowledge the good ideas of others.
In the expression “All roads lead to Rome.” we are saying that all over the world, traditions come from the Roman’s culture. But because Rome was greatly influenced by the Greeks, then how does this expression have truth in it? I think the expression should really be “All roads lead to Greece.” For if the Romans were as influenced by the Greeks as it seems, then the Romans were not truly establishing their own cultural traditions.
I thought that it was fascinating how the literature of Rome changed significantly over the years. The first of Rome's more famous writings was written to exalt the Roman Empire. At that point, the deterioration of the Empire was not to the point that authors such as Virgil thought it necessary to mention it in their works. A little later, Horace also wrote of Rome's triumphs yet included thoughts on the beginning of decline. When Livy wrote his long history of Rome, he still uplifted the early Republic but believed that the vices of Rome had reached a point of no return. By the time of Juvenal, the literature he wrote focused strictly on the loss of morals in the empire.
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13 comments:
Have you often wondered why Rome and Greece were so similar? Well, this is because the Greeks influenced much of Roman culture. One way the Greeks influenced the Romans was with their literature. By studying the Greeks' literature, Romans created their own literary works. Another way the Greeks influenced the Romans was their studying of the sciences. Galen, a physician, and Ptolemy, an astronomer and mathematician, were two Greek men who made many advances in the sciences. Art was yet another way the Greeks influenced the Romans. Even though, in the end the Romans excelled in art compared to the Greeks, the Greeks were the ones who stirred up the love of art in the Romans. Lastly, the Greeks influenced the Romans in religious beliefs. They took on the idea of the mythical gods on Mount Olympus and used it with their nature gods. As you can see, Greece influenced the Roman culture. Without the Greeks' influence where would Roman culture be?
Something I found interesting in this weeks reading was two of greeks philosophies, Epicureanism and Stoicism. Epicureanism teaches that true happiness comes only as a man frees his mind from fear and his body from pain. Stoicism teaches that the highest good is the pursuit of the virtues of dignity, simplicity of life, courage, duty, and service to fellow men. The Romans did not find Greek philosophy very interesting. But they did find Epicureanism and Stoicism very practical for guid lines for their lives.
Hello all!
The way I wrote my reading journal wouldn’t make sense to post just part of it, so here is a summary:
Just like genre popularity changes now-a-day’s, for example the recent craze of books including the zombie apocalypse compared to the previous craze of superheroes, genres in ancient Rome changed as well. First off we get Virgil, the “Homer of Rome” Who, just like Homer, focused on epic battle poems, glorifying Rome to her highest. Next is Horace, who also focused on epic battle poems but unlike Virgil mentioned the faults of Rome as well as her success. After that we get a big genre change. Ovid brings us from epic poems to romantic myths. Unfortunately for Ovid at the time of his writing the emperor was trying to straighten out the crooked morals of the Romans. Landing in his stories being banned from libraries and exiled from Rome. Which is most likely the reason for his works to be less known than Virgil and our next writer: Livy. Livy was a historian who changed the romantic genre to his 142 historical Roman volumes. (Which have been reported by some to be repetitive.) Following Livy is Juvenal, a pessimistic poet who longs for the return of the republic, he writes of the social problems Rome is suffering from. Then comes Plutarch, who wrote biographies comparing well known Greeks and Romans. However there is a vast difference in what genre is popular now and what was popular then. Our genre popularity is based on what people are enjoying reading and what is getting the best review. Genre popularity then was based on what poets and historians were writing. All I can say is I am glad that I live now so I can chose what I get to read. Instead only of having to read what authors are currently writing.
Oh and our Tangent List has gotten so long that it is now on the back cover of my notebook!
-Sarah
Ok, I really enjoyed reading about Rome and Greece. I'm really glad that Greece influenced Rome to view things more beautifully rather than practically, because I believe that that is a really important thing for a culture to do. Also, when reading about the Roman Colosseum, I found sooo many connections to the Hunger Games.
"The victors in these life-and-death contests became instant public heroes."
This sentence could basically be used to describe either The Hunger Games or the Colosseum.
That actually scares me quite a bit, because many people think the Hunger Games are super far-fetched and ridiculous, when really, they've already happened in history. If they've happened before, who's to say they won't happen again, if we let our country fall away towards that sort of barbaric lifestyle?
Also there's a character named Seneca in THG too... so...
The portion of this week’s reading I found most interesting was the destruction of Pompeii. Just thinking about how all those people were just going about their normal lives on August 24, 79 AD, not suspecting that they would never see tomorrow, is crazy to think about. It says in the reading that plaster casts were found portraying the final agonies of the citizens of Pompeii. I know their is a lot of death in history, and the people of Pompeii are a small group of people to die compared to other tragic events in history, but they still stand out to me.
Hey Betsy, your comment reminded me of the Bible verse:
"What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
Is there a thing of which it is said,
“See, this is new”?
It has been already
in the ages before us.
There is no remembrance of former things,
nor will there be any remembrance
of later things yet to be
among those who come after."
Ecclesiastes 1:9-11
O.K., here's my comment:
I keep thinking how unfortunate it was that the Roman civilization was not founded on true Christianity. It was interesting to read about the grotesque gladiator fights and the many religions that circled around Rome at that time. The Romans would have people fight to the death in the Colosseum, and be devoured by lions or other wild animals. When I read about that, my horror of it was renewed, but even more so when I went on to read that the two purposes for these "games" was to occupy the unemployed masses of Roman citizens, and for Roman emperors to gain favor from the people. Having read and heard about the many martyrs of the faith who died in the Colosseum, it is so sad that the majority of the Roman populace supported this "amusement".
Reading about the poets was interesting. Virgil was the "Homer of the Romans". He wrote the Aeneid which was modeled after Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. Virgil wanted the Aeneid destroyed after he died, but his friends published it instead. After Virgil died his friend ,Horace, became the "Poet of the Augustan age". He praised Augustus would one of his poems. But he also warned the Romans about luxury and ease and praised simple virtues. Next was the poetry of Ovid. He wrote about mythology and love. I would enjoy reading about mythology. He took over two hundred myths and made them into one big story. Ovid became popular with the upper class because of his stories. However, Augustus wasn't pleased. He banned Ovid from three public libraries and eventually exiled him from the city. After Augustus died there was a poet named Juvenal who wrote about social problems with the empire and on loose morals.
Something I found to be of interest this week was the overview of Roman religious beliefs. In the early Republic, Romans worshipped the gods of nature. When they came into contact with the Greeks, they began to mix their gods with the mythological gods of Mount Olympus. But eventually, the Romans were filled with dissatisfaction. They soon turned to things like philosophy in their quest for true happiness. Philosophies like Epicureanism and Stoicism, also derived from the Greeks, became widely practiced. What strikes me most is how the Romans, like many other cultures, hopped from belief to belief, philosophy to philosophy. All without finding true fulfillment! Trying to “free your mind and body from pain,” and “pursuing courage, duty, and simplicity” are not necessarily bad things, until you are trying to put those things in the place of God. True happiness and fulfillment comes only from Him, and trying to fill the void with material things and vain philosophies will only leave us emptier. In the musical “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” Charlie Brown is trying to find happiness. After many mishaps and adventures gone wrong, he finally finds true contentment. At the end of the musical, in the song “happiness,” Charlie Brown sings the simple truth; “happiness is in God alone.” If only the Romans could have seen this!
I thought it was interesting to see the diversity of the different poets of ancient Rome. Virgil glorified the empire through his literary works and the Aeneid, giving the strong belief that Rome would one day rule the world. He was the most famous poet of his day. However, after his death his friend Horace became "The Poet of The Augustian Age." Like Virgil Horace also spoke of the glory of Rome,but he did not over look the problems of the empire. Then there was Ovid who wrote about mythology and not just Roman, but myths from all over the ancient world. These three men were all famous and well known poets in their time. Therefore which one was the best? I believe the Romans would have said Virgil and who could blame them? Someone who makes your empire look incredible and destined to rule the world? The Roman people were prideful and very proud of their land. They loved bloodshed and would not tolerate weakness. Therefore I do not think they would have particularly enjoyed Horace's points about Roman faults. To sum everything up, i thought it was fascinating how these three men were all famous poets and yet had very different styles, views on importance and effect on the people of Rome
It amazes me how much Greek culture affected Rome. Roman writers copied Greek literature, and Roman artists copied Greek statues. Greek scientists, like Galen, and Ptolemy affected Roman science. The Romans adopted the gods that the Greeks worshipped, and gave them different names. When they were no longer satisfied with these gods, they turned to philosophy. Two Greek philosophies, Epicureanism and Stoicism, influenced Roman thinking.
Even though the Romans considered themselves to be the rulers of the world, they didn't discount the ideas of others. They saw value in aspects of Greek culture, and used it for their own. That's a sign of a good leader; someone who takes authority, but isn't afraid to acknowledge the good ideas of others.
In the expression “All roads lead to Rome.” we are saying that all over the world, traditions come from the Roman’s culture. But because Rome was greatly influenced by the Greeks, then how does this expression have truth in it? I think the expression should really be “All roads lead to Greece.” For if the Romans were as influenced by the Greeks as it seems, then the Romans were not truly establishing their own cultural traditions.
I thought that it was fascinating how the literature of Rome changed significantly over the years. The first of Rome's more famous writings was written to exalt the Roman Empire. At that point, the deterioration of the Empire was not to the point that authors such as Virgil thought it necessary to mention it in their works. A little later, Horace also wrote of Rome's triumphs yet included thoughts on the beginning of decline. When Livy wrote his long history of Rome, he still uplifted the early Republic but believed that the vices of Rome had reached a point of no return. By the time of Juvenal, the literature he wrote focused strictly on the loss of morals in the empire.
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