Roman Gender/Sexuality — Introduction

Readings and Access to Them

Internet Sources via Library — requires regular Bmail login name and password (= PODS logon/password)

In the folllowing two web readings, you should pay closest attention to general considerations (= Greek + Roman worlds) and sections focusing specifically on the Roman world:

Parker, Holt N. "heterosexuality." The Oxford Classical Dictionary. 3 ed. Oxford University Press. 2003. Web. 23 October 2013. <http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780198606413.001.0001/acref-9780198606413-e-3083?p=emailAaJe1UoArnor6&d=/10.1093/acref/9780198606413.001.0001/acref-9780198606413-e-3083>

Halperin, David M. "homosexuality." The Oxford Classical Dictionary. 3 ed. Oxford University Press. 2003. Web. 23 October 2013. <http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780198606413.001.0001/acref-9780198606413-e-3142>

These are very brief. . . .

From:

Diotima: Materials for the Study of Women and Gender in the SAncient World. The Stoa Consortium. 7 April 2011. Web. 23 October 2013. <http://www.stoa.org/diotima/>

From:

VRoma Catullus. VRoma. N.d. Web. 23 October 2013. <http://www.vroma.org/~hwalker/VRomaCatullus/>

Bb PDF (via Bb)

  • LEFKOWITZ - "Women's Voices." Read bk pages 8-9, only Sulpicia's poems, bold #s 22-23.

Journal Entries

I invite you to respond freely to these texts.

Study Guide Proper

As to this new topic of ours, namely, Roman gender and sexuality, it will help us round out our understanding of at least two things, both relevant to the final paper:

  1. The broader Mediterranean context for the Western tradition invoked by both Finnis and Nussbaum in their respective approaches to connections between sexuality and law.
  2. Certain larger movements/transformations/continuities in the development of Western attitudes to sex and gender.

For this initial foray into res romanae ("Roman matters"), we'll be reading and discussing two secondary sources (Roman sexuality, Roman women) and several primary sources (brief poems plus an epitaph).

Of the two secondary sources, one is by now somewhat out of date, though it conveniently summarizes a lot of information. (Our presenters may be able to update us.)

The poems and epitaph will help illustrate the secondary readings.

As a class exercise (prepare for class with this in mind), I would like to have us try to interpret the primary readings through the filters of

  • secondary readings assigned above
  • what we've learned about Greece (compare/contrast)
  • the Finnis and Nussbaum readings

For that, I will in class on Thursday distribute individual primary texts to break-out groups, who'll then report back to the class.

Study Questions

As for the bigger, whole-semester issues, they can be framed as follows:

  • How were the Romans like the Greeks in the matter of sexuality and gender?
  • How were they different?
  • What do we see that is particular to each?
  • What that is shared?

Specific to the Roman unit (this class and the next several):

  • What seem to be the approved sex/gender roles for Roman
    • women?
    • men?
    • non-citizens?
    • citizens?
    • lower orders?
    • elites?

The above will find us inquiring into such things as Roman. . .

  • marriage
  • procreation
  • adultery
  • pederasty (?? between citizen males)
  • prostitution (male and female)
  • passive versus active sexuality
  • "Us"
  • "The Other"

Historical Background

First, these are Romans, not Greeks. Their language was Latin (a language of Italy, and ancestor of French, Spanish, Italian, etc.), though educated Romans also knew Greek. Initially, Rome controlled only its surrounding territory. Eventually, though, its empire grew to encompass virtually the entire world known to Mediterranean peoples. From Portugal to the Persian Gulf, from Scotland to Egypt, Roman law and culture (and, to a certain degree, the Latin language, especially in the west) came to be the (nearly) universal standard. All roads led to Rome, and by 212 CE, all free men and women residing within the empire were Roman citizens.

But periodicity needs to be kept in mind . . .

  • MONARCHIAL PERIOD: From the founding of the city (traditionally, 753 BCE) until about 512, Rome was ruled by kings
  • REPUBLICAN PERIOD: From about 512 until 44 BCE (the death of Julius Caesar), Rome was a republic (i.e., non-monarchy) of a basically oligarchic cast. The Senate (senatus, "council of elders") and elected officials ("magistrates") administered the state; the People (populus) elected those officials and passed laws
  • PRINCIPATE: After a period of civil war and unsettled politics, a kind monarchy was imposed, with an emperor (princeps, imperator, Caesar, Augustus) ruling in (theoretical) cooperation with the Senate. This lasted from about 27 BCE until the later third century CE

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