Discovering The Roman Family

These essays on various aspects of family life in ancient Rome offer an especially timely and provocative new characterization of how this most elementary component of Roman society was structured. Recognizing that a traditional nuclear model is necessary for a basic understanding of Roman family organization, Keith R. Bradley argues that a broader, more extensive context must be established if this structure is to be fully appreciated. Examining the roles of slaves, servants, and other surrogates in the upbringing and socialization of children, and concentrating on the parts played by wet-nurses and male childerminders, his book molds an entirely new framework for the study of the Roman family. He investigates the extent of serial marriage, especially among the upper-classes, and the effects of the widespread familial dislocation that resulted, and for the first time considers the prevalence of child labor in the Roman world, contrasting the experiences of upper-class and lower-class children. Bringing these themes together in a lively final section through a fresh, thorough examination of Cicero's correspondence, Bradley portrays the life of an actual Roman family. A seminal contribution to Roman social history, this book is essential reading for anyone interested in how the family worked and lived in classical times.

These essays on various aspects of family life in ancient Rome offer an especially timely and provocative new characterization of how this most elementary component of Roman society was structured. Recognizing that a traditional nuclear model is necessary for a basic understanding of Roman family organization, Keith R. Bradley argues that a broader, more extensive context must be established if this structure is to be fully appreciated. Examining the roles of slaves, servants, and other surrogates in the upbringing and socialization of children, and concentrating on the parts played by wet-nurses and male childerminders, his book molds an entirely new framework for the study of the Roman family. He investigates the extent of serial marriage, especially among the upper-classes, and the effects of the widespread familial dislocation that resulted, and for the first time considers the prevalence of child labor in the Roman world, contrasting the experiences of upper-class and lower-class children. Bringing these themes together in a lively final section through a fresh, thorough examination of Cicero's correspondence, Bradley portrays the life of an actual Roman family. A seminal contribution to Roman social history, this book is essential reading for anyone interested in how the family worked and lived in classical times.

Provides a general picture of the main features of the Roman family and looks at important legal aspects such as property rights, dowries, divorce, and the authority of the male with its links to political power.

Brings together what historians, anthropologists, and philologists have learned about the family in ancient Rome. Among the topics: family relations and the law, marriage, children in the Roman family, and the family through the life cycle. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

In this lively and detailed study, Beth Severy examines the relationship between the emergence of the Roman Empire and the status and role of this family in Roman society. The family is placed within the social and historical context of the transition from republic to empire, from Augustus' rise to sole power into the early reign of his successor Tiberius. Augustus and the Family at the Birth of the Roman Empire is an outstanding example of how, if we examine "private" issues such as those of family and gender, we gain a greater understanding of "public" concerns such as politics, religion and history. Discussing evidence from sculpture to cults and from monuments to military history, the book pursues the changing lines between public and private, family and state that gave shape to the Roman imperial system.

A Companion to Families in the Greek and Roman Worlds draws from both established and current scholarship to offer a broad overview of the field, engage in contemporary debates, and pose stimulating questions about future development in the study of families. Provides up-to-date research on family structure from archaeology, art, social, cultural, and economic history Includes contributions from established and rising international scholars Features illustrations of families, children, slaves, and ritual life, along with maps and diagrams of sites and dwellings Honorable Mention for 2011 Single Volume Reference/Humanities & Social Sciences PROSE award granted by the Association of American Publishers

This lively and original guidebook is the first to show students new to the subject exactly what Roman social history involves, and how they can study it for themselves. After presenting a short history of the development and current position of the discipline, the author discusses the kinds of evidence that can be used, and the full range of resources available. Two case-studies provide practical examples of how to approach sources, and what we can learn from them. Clear, concise and accessible, with all text extracts translated into English, this is the ideal introduction to an increasingly popular subject.

This volume presents a wide range of contributions that analyse the cultural, sociological and communicative significance of tears and crying in Graeco-Roman antiquity. The papers cover the time from the eighth century BCE until late antiquity and take into account a broad variety of literary genres such as epic, tragedy, historiography, elegy, philosophical texts, epigram and the novel. The collection also contains two papers from modern socio-psychology.