Livy
I.
Livy's Ab Urbe Condita
a. Livy's monumental history of Rome was written between 27 and
9 BCE under the reign of the emperor Augustus
b. It records everything from the arrival of Aeneas in Italy to the
reign of Augustus
c. The romans wanted a mythical heritage for themselves to make
them equal to the Greeks
d. Only about 25% of the work still survives e. The surviving books cover the beginning through 293 BCE
(Books 1-10), and 219-166 BCE (Books 21-45)
i. Covers 2nd and 3rd Punic Wars
f. The material in the early books of Livy's history is considered
legendary rather than historical
may not have any basis in historical fact
h. They provide important information about how the Romans
thought about themselves, and specifically how the Romans
thought about gender -> gender ideology i. How gender relates to Roman society and Roman identity
i. These stories are LEGENDS, not FACTS
11.
The Rape of the Sabine Women
a. Sabine people live adjacent to Rome
b. The first inhabitants of Rome were all men
i. They need wives to continue populating the cities
c. Neighboring cities refused to let their daughters marry the
Romans because htye regarded them as too disreputable
d. Romulus came up with a plan to acquire wives for his people
e. Invited all the neighboring peoples, including the Sabines, to a
festival in honor of Neptune
i. Neptune is Roman version Poseidon
f. When the signal was given, Roman youths seized and carried off all the young women
i. Men forced the women to marry them through abduction
g. Romulus had a way of winning the women over
i. " Romulus himself went around, telling them that this had
happened because of their parents' arrogance in refusing
intermarriage with neighbors. Nevertheless, he said,
women would the full rights of marriage, having a share in
their possessions, Roman citizenship, and the dearest
possession that the human race has--children. They should
calm their anger and give their hearts to those to whom
chance had given their bodies. For, he said, often affection
has eventually come from a sense of injustice. They would
find their husbands kinder because each would try not only
to fulfill his obligation, but also to make up for the longing
for their parents and homeland. The men spoke sweet
words to them, trying to excuse their action on the
grounds of passionate love, a plea that is particularly
effective where a woman's heart is concerned" (Livy, 1.9)
1. Marriage is not about love; it's about having
children for the good and prosperity of Rome
2. Actions of men are justifiable to spur political
movements, where women are dehumanized and treated poorly ii. "At that point the Sabine women, whose abduction had
given rise to the war, dared to advance amid the flying
weapons, their womanish fear overcome by the terrible
situation. With loosened hair and torn garments, they
rushed in from the side, parting the battle lines and
checking the