Product Description

Revised to include new selections and updated bibliographical material, the second edition of this popular sourcebook offers a rich, revealing look at everyday Roman life. The selections, all in fresh English translations prepared by the author, are drawn from a wide array of documents - letters, manuals, recipes, graffiti, and inscriptions, as well as literary sources. Each selection is thematically arranged to develop a detailed picture of life in all strata of society and a survey of the full range of social activity - from the enactment of imperialist policies to the specifics of daily life for the average Roman. Readers are introduced to Roman family life, housing, entertainment, medicine, education, religion, and other important topics. Extensive annotations, abundant bibliographical notes, maps, appendices, and textual cross-references provide the historical and cultural background necessary for readers to easily understand the selections. Lively and readable, the second edition of As the Romans Did provides the most lucid account available of Roman life in all its diversity.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #193866 in Books
• Published on: 1998-01-09
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

Review

"Rich....Very much a collection for today's English-speaking investigator of the Roman world....Should find a very wide and happy audience."--New England Classical Newsletter & Journal (on the previous edition)
"Will be useful in college courses and high-school classrooms alike."--The Classical Outlook
"The most lucid account of daily activity thus far constructed....A wonderful sourcebook of everyday life...will become a short classic of the past."--Ronald T. Marchese, University of Minnesota
"A wonderful book! The best introduction to the Romans that I have seen. The Romans speak to the students in their own voices, but the clear organization, excellent introductions and cross-referencing make the book accessible and informative."--Kathryn Argetsinger, University of Rochester

About the Author

Jo-Ann Shelton is Professor of Classics at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She is the author of several books and articles on the social and cultural history of Rome in the early imperial period, including Hercules Furens: The Madness of Hercules (1991).

Customer Reviews

A valuable source on life as a Roman
I must say this was an incredibly fun sourcebook to read. At times it had me laughing with humorous quotations such as; "I am amazed, o wall, that you have not collapsed and fallen, since you must bear the tedious stupidities of so many scrawlers" and at other times I would shudder; "Good God, what scrawny little slaves they were! Their skin was everywhere embroidered with purple welts from their many beatings. Their backs, scarred from floggings... their complexions were an ugly yellow..."

Using a slew of both primary and secondary sources, Jo-Ann Shelton takes us through the life of the Romans. Covering topics as varied as slavery, provincial administration, the family unit, the magistrates and occupations, we are brought directly into Roman life with all of its practices, norms, values and peculiarities. The key feature of this book is the focus on the common Roman and how they lived with a section devoted entirely to woman in Roman society, a much overlooked topic. From dinner parties to funeral clubs, all aspects of the common Romans life are discussed.

In all a very worthwhile book to own and use as both a source of reference and entertainment!

An Extraordinary Book
An extraordinary book, it alternates concise, cogent discussions of every aspect of Roman life with equally concise, cogent and elegantly translated short selections from Roman sources that illuminate the topic, serving both as a window on the lives of the Romans and as a comprehensive introduction to the wealth of Roman literature and documents that have survived. I was always entertained and often surprised and moved by the insights the book offered into Roman attitudes about government, religion, family life, economic striving, military affairs, and much, much more. Ranging from the laments of dramatists about the short attention spans of their audiences to the complaints of neighbors about the noise of early morning classes for school children, the book is so comprehensive - and Rome has so pervasively influenced our lives today - that a selection even explains why for over two thousand years grooms have traditionally carried their brides across the threshold.

Excellent
This book truly makes the ancient Romans come alive. The passages Shelton includes were written by ancient Romans themselves, so it is as though they are able to speak to us and tell us of their everyday lives. In this book it becomes clear that they were really not so different from people today, having many of the same problems and concerns. Shelton also uses very helpful cross referencing, as well as a thorough appendix and index, which aid the reader in fully understanding the book, which is not a difficult read at all.