Fall 1998

LEGERE AB URBE CONDITA OPERA HISTORICORUM

"TO READ HISTORIANS' WORKS FROM THE FOUNDING OF ROME": Society President Shane Bjornlie presents a year-long look at the course of history from the classic and medieval historians. The fall semester starts with the classical historians as they recorded the events of Rome and the world around them. Our goal: to understand the intent and methods of the authors and the significance to their contemporary audience. By looking at the various authors' styles and content, we examine how most historians introduced contemporary social commentary by relating the glories of past events and the valor of old Rome, contrasting it (especially as Republic gave way to Empire) with the newer Rome and with the contemporary Romans' inability to avoid the corruption, decay, and extreme social stratification that the wealth and power from conquering the Mediterranean lands gave the once humble city and its inhabitants.