Roman society was unusually horrific even by the (not great!) standards of the times. The fact it's revered, at all, points to some very ugly truths about this one.
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I think it's because (a) we don't have many detailed records from the enslaved class, and (b) post facto hagiography of Empire. Maybe the reasons too.
sep 1, 2025, 1:10 am • 8 0 • view
Yes, and what we do have isn't nearly as widely known as it should be. I've seen even Tacitus' "make a desert and call it peace" quote wake some up on this front because they'd never heard it before. And yeah, very intentional hagiography meant to prop up very intentional politics today.
sep 1, 2025, 1:14 am • 10 2 • view
*other, not the
sep 1, 2025, 1:35 am • 2 0 • view
I read Cato and Varro’s “On Agricultural” once (or was it “On Farming”?) and was horrified. The slavery! The abuse!
sep 1, 2025, 1:11 am • 4 1 • view
P.S. You win, it is BOTH On Farming and De agri cultura. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_agri...
sep 1, 2025, 1:23 am • 2 0 • view
Thank you, I am looking for these narratives. 💜
sep 1, 2025, 1:18 am • 2 0 • view
It is very very hard to play historical fantasy straight without unbounded quotidian horror.
sep 1, 2025, 1:18 am • 3 0 • view
Truth.
sep 1, 2025, 7:41 am • 2 0 • view