Research Question C:

"In first century BCE Rome, what was the role, attire, and status of a free born Roman woman?"


In politics today we hear a lot about family values. That is hardly surprising, since family is fundamental to our sense of social well-being. Trends in divorce rates or in numbers of single-parent families are serious causes of concern and also sources of heated political rhetoric(!!!). The well-being of the family is so basic that it is a good not reducible to impact on the economic portion of society, though some people try to say it's bigger than what it honestly is. The Romans had their own evolutionary story about family mores, and it had nothing to do with the invention of affection, which they took to be natural and eternal in the family. However, their story did contain elements of the decline of paternal authority and the stable family. Roman authors--all men--often lamented that in the late Republic wives no longer played the ideal role that they had fulfilled for centuries. According to the Roman writers of the first century BCE and first century CE, divorce became increasingly frequent after 200 BCE, initiated easily by the husband or the wife. In addition, wives had their own property, which they could sell, give away or bequeath as they liked. As a result, women became more liberated and less dependent on their husbands. In fact, by the late Republic a rich wife who could divorce and take her wealth with her had a real threat against her husband and could wield influence over him. The sense of independence also showed up in increasing sexual promiscuity and adultery.

So basically, men thought women were to cook, clean, make babies, and keep the bed warm. End of story. Pht. Bhat. Done.