BASC80421 - Livy on the Birth of the Roman Republic

Course Description

The Roman Empire is frequently evoked as a cautionary tale for modern America. Rising from humble beginnings, Rome dominated the western world for over 600 years before falling to barbarian hordes and its own dysfunction. As a republic, Rome developed institutions based on law and justice that were used by the Founding Fathers of the United States as models for their own government, but which may also have contained the seeds of their own destruction. In this course we will read and discuss the first five books of Livy’s history, Ab Urbe Condita (From the Founding of the City), often known in English as The History of Rome. These books begin with the semi-mythical founding of Rome by Romulus and chronicle the early development of the Republic. Through his discussion of early Rome, Livy also gives us a commentary on the contemporary upheavals that he witnessed during his own lifetime as Rome moved from Republic to Empire under Julius and Augustus Caesar.

No prior reading is required for the first class.

Notes

This Basic Program Online Discussion Course is conducted in exactly the same manner as an in-person Basic Program discussion course - except that participants join in from whatever location is convenient for them via an Internet-connect computer, tablet or mobile device.

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