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CS92PROD
From Memory to Spectacle: Defining the Roman
CCIV 237
Spring 2011 not offered

In 17 BCE the emperor Augustus staged the Secular Games, a centennial celebration of Rome and a showpiece of his new regime. The event combined theater and chariot-racing with religious ritual in honor of the protecting deities of the city. The poet Horace composed a hymn for the occasion, invoking Roman history and legend. In this course we will explore these methods for defining what it meant to be Roman. One looks back to the past, creating an image of Romanitas (the essence of the Roman) through the reshaping of history and legend. In this connection we will read Virgil's AENEID and Horace's ODES. The other is acted out in the present through ceremony and spectacle. We will examine select state ceremonies and also the three great spectacula, of the theater, the circus, and the arena, that communicated aspects of what it meant to be Roman throughout the Roman world.

Essential Capabilities: None
Credit: 1 Gen Ed Area Dept: None
Course Format: Lecture / DiscussionGrading Mode: Student Option
Level: UGRD Prerequisites: None
Fulfills a Major Requirement for: None

Last Updated on MAR-29-2024
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