Roman Masculinity and Politics from Republic to Empire (Routledge Monographs in Classical Studies)

This volume explores the role that republican political participation played in forging elite Roman masculinity. It situates familiarly "manly" traits like militarism, aggressive sexuality, and the pursuit of power within a political system based on power sharing and cooperation. In deliberations in the Senate, at social gatherings, and on military campaign, displays of consensus with other men greased the wheels of social discourse and built elite comradery. Through literary sources and inscriptions that offer censorious or affirmative appraisal of male behavior from the Middle and Late Republic ( ca . 300–31 BCE) to the Principate or Early Empire ( ca . 100 CE), this book shows how the vir bonus , or "good man," the Roman persona of male aristocratic excellence, modulated imperatives for personal distinction and military and sexual violence with political cooperation and moral exemplarity. While the advent of one-man rule in the Empire transformed political power relations, ideals forged in the Republic adapted to the new climate and provided a coherent model of masculinity for emperor and senator alike. Scholars often paint a picture of Republic and Principate as distinct landscapes, but enduring ideals of male self-fashioning constitute an important continuity. Roman Masculinity and Politics from Republic to Empire provides a fascinating insight into the intertwined nature of masculinity and political power for anyone interested in Roman political and social history, and those working on gender in the ancient world more broadly. This volume explores the role that republican political participation played in forging elite Roman masculinity. It situates familiarly "manly" traits like militarism, aggressive sexuality, and the pursuit of power within a political system based on power sharing and cooperation. In deliberations in the Senate, at social gatherings, and on military campaign, displays of consensus with other men greased the wheels of social discourse and built elite comradery. Through literary sources and inscriptions that offer censorious or affirmative appraisal of male behavior from the Middle and Late Republic (ca. 300 - 31 BCE) to the Principate or Early Empire (ca. 100 CE), this book shows how the vir bonus, or "good man," the Roman persona of male aristocratic excellence, modulated imperatives for personal distinction and military and sexual violence with political cooperation and moral exemplarity. While the advent of one-man rule in the Empire transformed political power relations, ideals forged in the Republic adapted to the new climate and provided a coherent model of masculinity for emperor and senator alike. Scholars often paint a picture of Republic and Principate as distinct landscapes, but enduring ideals of male self-fashioning constitute an important continuity. Roman Masculinity and Politics from Republic to Empire provides a fascinating insight into the intertwined nature of masculinity and political power for anyone interested in Roman political and social history, and those working on gender in the ancient world more broadly Cover 1 Half Title 2 Series Page 3 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Dedication 6 Contents 8 List of Figures 10 Preface 11 Acknowledgements 12 Abbreviations 13 Introduction 14 Masculinity, Individuality, and the Persona 19 Chapter Outline 22 Notes 23 1. The Roman Vir 26 Power, Aggression, and Dominance 28 Tyranny and the Vir Malus 32 “Republican” Masculinity 38 Conclusion 42 Notes 42 2. The Old Boys’ Club in the Middle Republic 48 Early Values: The Convivial Brotherhood 49 Father Knows Best: Imitatio Patris 52 The Censor’s Task 55 Militiae: The Bad Man Abroad 56 Militiae: The Good Man Abroad 60 Domi: The Bad Man at Home 64 Domi: The Good Man at Home 66 Competition from Within: Electoral Contexts 67 Competition from Below: The Business Class 68 Conclusion 71 Notes 72 3. Vir and Populus in the Late Republic 80 A Changed Political World 82 Courting the Populus 83 Changes to Training and Education 88 Cato and Caesar 91 Popular Apotheosis 94 Vir Divus: Pompey’s Command in the East 99 Conclusion 103 Notes 104 4. Decline and the Imperial Senate 110 The Motif of the Decline of Manliness 112 Forging a Moral Consensus 116 Imperial Electioneering 121 Competition in Performative Oratory and Literature 124 Oppositional Stances 126 Agricola’s Gloria Through Obsequium 135 Notes 137 5. Good Emperors and Good Men 144 Pliny’s Optimus Princeps 146 Tiberius in the SC de Cn. Pisone Patre 151 Imperial Exemplarity 154 Youth’s Alternative: Caligula and Nero 162 Notes 171 Epilogue 176 Notes 178 Bibliography 179 Index 199 Index Locorum 204