Rome's growing power in the Mediterranean during the mid-Republic (4th to 2nd centuries BCE) gave it wealth, luxury goods and access to new cultures. This lecture will investigate the history of the mid-Republic and how this affected early Roman literature, particularly the comic drama of Plautus. Copyright 2013 La Trobe University, all rights reserved. Contact for permissions.

Plautus and Pseudolus (handout)

The Roman World introduces students to the society, literature and art of ancient Rome, through a study of its major historical and literary figures, such as Julius Caesar, Augustus, Nero, Virgil and Ovid. We shall look at Rome’s place in the ancient Mediterranean world, and its connections with ancient Greece and other cultures, such as Egypt and Gaul. Through almost constant warfare, Rome accumulated an enormous Mediterranean empire, and this subject will investigate how this shaped Roman culture, through such topics as the acquisition of slaves and the ability to import luxury objects. We shall also see how the civil conflicts of the first century BCE affected Rome and Roman identity, leading to Caesar, Pompey and others engaging in propaganda wars, as seen through competitive monumental building, and to some self-questioning in the literature of the period. Towards the end of the semester, we shall look at Rome’s lasting influence, and the way that we continue to represent Rome in book and film.