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The Romans: An Introduction is a concise, readable and comprehensive survey of the Roman world, which explores 1,200 years of political, military and cultural history alongside religion, social pressures, literature, art and architecture. This new edition includes updated and revised materials designed to develop analytical skills in literary and material evidence, evoking themes that resonate in both ancient and modern societies: fake news, class struggles, urbanization, concepts of race and gender, imperialism, constitutional power and religious intolerance. The fourth edition incorporates a number of new features and evolving fields: A new chapter on provinces, provincial administration and acculturation in the Roman Empire. An extended chapter on Christianity and Rome's legacy with new case studies in the reception of Roman culture. An extended chapter on Roman society and daily life, including recent scholarship on gender and race in the ancient world. Integrated use of text and material evidence which is designed to develop analytical skills in critical source assessment. The book's successful Open Access website updated to include new case studies on emerging topics such as performance politics, religious syncretism, media sensationalism and cultural heritage. Thoroughly updated and redeveloped, this new edition of The Romans will continue to serve as the definitive introduction to the life, history and culture of the Roman world, from its foundation to its significance to later civilizations
Abigail Graham has been a Lecturer in Ancient History at the University of Warwick and is currently a visiting fellow at the Institute for Classical Studies in London. She specializes in the epigraphy and monumentality of the ancient world, coordinating epigraphic training courses for the British School at Rome and the Centre for the Study of Ancient Documents (Oxford). In addition to articles, book chapters and media appearances, she has published The Roman Empire: A Brief History (2008) and keeps a blog: CaveatLector:ReadingRome
Cover -- Endorsements -- Half Title -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- Table of Contents -- List of figures -- List of maps -- Acknowledgments -- Advice on using ancient sources: Caveat Lector (Reader Beware)! -- Companion website -- General introductions and websites -- 1. THE ORIGINS OF ROME -- Foundation legends and their sources -- Rome: center of the universe -- Further reading -- 2. THE REPUBLIC (510-60 BC) -- The birth of the Roman constitution (509-281 BC) -- Origins of empire: Roman warfare and imperialism (281-121 BC)
The twilight of the Roman Republic: administering an empire 121-60 BC -- Further reading -- 3. THE RISE OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE: TWELVE CAESARS (60 BC-AD 96) -- Sources on the Twelve Caesars -- The first triumvirate (60-48 BC) -- The rise of Augustus and the second triumvirate -- Augustus: restorer of the republic? -- Tiberius (AD 14-37) -- Caligula (AD 37-41) -- Claudius (AD 41-54) -- Nero (AD 54-69) -- The year of four emperors: summer 68-winter 69 AD -- Vespasian (AD 69-79) and the Flavian dynasty -- Titus (AD 79-81) -- Domitian (AD 81-96) -- Further reading
4. THE ROMAN EMPIRE: ZENITH AND DECLINE (AD 96-330) -- Making the Empire work -- Sources: Cassius Dio, Ammianus and the Historia Augusta -- The "five good emperors" (AD 96-180) -- The Severans: the disintegration of dynasty (AD 180-234) -- The 3rd-century crisis? Devaluation and disorder (AD 235-284) -- Recovery: Diocletian, Constantine and Christian Rome (AD 284-337) -- Further reading -- 5. ROMAN RELIGIONS AND MYTHOLOGY -- Roman divinities -- Prayer and sacrifice: blessings and curses -- Omens -- Worship in the home -- Worship in the fields -- State religion: offices
State religion festivals and the calendar -- Religion in the provinces: east meets west -- Jews and Christians -- Further reading -- 6. SOCIETY AND DAILY LIFE -- Social hierarchy -- Traditional values and customs -- Economy and money -- The Roman calendar -- Working in ancient Rome -- The roles of women: daughter, mother, wife -- Marriage -- Working girls -- The ideal Roman woman? -- Imperial women: Livia and Agrippina the Younger -- tiger moms? -- Slaves and slavery -- Education -- Dress -- Sexuality and gender -- Food and drink -- Holidays and the games -- Further reading
7. ART, ARCHITECTURE AND BUILDING -- Sculpture -- Painting and mosaic -- Domestic architecture -- The architecture of public buildings -- A typical Roman theater -- Infrastructure -- Further reading -- 8. ROMAN LITERATURE -- Languages and sources -- Ennius -- Comedy: Plautus and Terence -- Lyric poetry: Catullus and Horace -- Virgil -- Elegiac poetry: Propertius and Ovid -- Epigram and satire: Martial and Juvenal -- The novel: Petronius and Apuleius -- Historians: Caesar, Livy, Tacitus and Suetonius -- Philosophy and science: Lucretius, Seneca and Pliny the Elder
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