Beard's SPQR. a History of Ancient

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Beard’s SPQR. A History of Ancient Rome as Background Reading in Classical Latin Courses. A Teaching Proposal by Tamara Lobato Beneyto

The Cambridge scholar provides an formulated by the present author and Introduction. Rationale, scope, analysis and discussion of primary aimed at furthering a reflection on and a and structure sources, and re-examines the significance discussion of the book’s contents among and consequences of the main historical students. This document was originally Contextual or background knowledge events and processes during such elaborated for undergraduates completing performs an important function in centuries. She starts by focusing on the ab initio and intermediate courses in second language learning and reading events of 63 BCE (first chapter), and then Classical Latin as part of degree comprehension, as a number of proceeds to discuss previous periods in programmes other than Classics (mainly theoretical and empirical studies have Roman History. In the sixth chapter, History), but it may be likewise useful for shown (see, for instance, P. L. Carrell, Beard resumes the account of events of students in other educational settings, 1983, 1982).1 To the extent that the already mentioned year, and continues such as the pre-university stage and Ancient Greek and Latin are verbal thereon with the rest of the historical continuous education. codes too, they constitute no exception account in linear chronological order. The headings in the first section, to the aforementioned principle. With a most engaging narrative style,she entitled On the chapter contents, are phrased Indeed, contextual knowledge is implicitly introduces non-specialist in a similar way as essay questions. Some particularly relevant to reading readers to some key aspects of the of them draw attention to specific comprehension in Classical Languages, methodological procedures of Source historical events, processes, and figures given the time, material, and cultural Criticism (Ad Fontes, Quellenforschung). The that students are requested to outline gap between their original context of book truly abides by the principle of docēre and discuss. Factual knowledge, use during antiquity, on the one hand, et delectāre. however, is not the sole scope in this and the context of the contemporary As far as the distribution of contents proposal, and so other headings concern learners of these languages, on the is concerned, the volume consists of a Beard’s argumentations on the other. Addressing and integrating this map section, a prologue, 12 chapters, an interpretative complexities entailed by type of knowledge into Classical Latin epilogue, timelines, illustrations, index, primary sources. In other words, the courses is, therefore, expected to aid and endnotes (further reading) referring the focus here is not only on Beard’s account student comprehension of both reader to the primary and secondary of major events and processes in Roman original and adapted classical texts. sources that have been handled in each history, but also on her remarks on It goes without saying that one way chapter. As far as the paratextual elements primary sources and their biases. to accomplish such integration is by of the volume are concerned, they Maps evidently place events and means of establishing a set of readings interrelate closely with Beard’s account processes in their geographical context, whereby students can autonomously learn and discussion, making an integral part of and the illustrations that feature about the historical context of theuse of the reading, one that certainly should not archaeological sites, inscriptions, artefacts, the Latin language during antiquity. to be overlooked by students. and artworks bear substantial interrelation Beard’s SPQR. A History of Ancient Rome This teaching proposal is structured with the discussions and argumentations covers the time period between the Iron into three main sections, all of which of the chapters.2 These elements thus Age (matters of Proto-History are consist of a number of suggested deserve as much attention as the volume’s addressed too) and the 3rd century CE. guidelines and assignments originally textual contents, and they are indeed

The Journal of Classics Teaching 20 (40) p.25-29 © The Classical Association 2019. This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction Downloaded infrom any https://www.cambridge.org/core medium, provided the original. IP work address: is properly 170.106.33.22 cited., on 24 Sep 2021 at 03:22:16, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at 25 https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2058631019000291 addressed in the second section, entitled subsequent historical periods, acquiring in On the paratextual elements of the volume. each given case new ad hoc connotations. Chapter 1. Cicero’s Finest Hour Recent publications have versed on Beard most accurately illustrates this by –– Explain what the phrase Conspiracy of the role and relevancy of material culture citing public statements that were once Catiline refers to in the historiography in the instruction in Classical Languages made by or about contemporary political of ancient Rome and indicate the main and Ancient History. Liddel (2017) has leaders, as well as by including one press textual primary sources that document discussed the use of Greek inscriptions photograph in which a group of civilians that historical event. in the study of antiquity at the pre- are carrying banners featuring the phrase university stage and has drawn attention Quousque tandem during a protest in a large –– Discuss the following statement: ‘63 to the convenience and opportunity of European city back in 2012. BCE is a significant year in that crucial their inclusion in the specifications of This teaching proposal can serve century’ (Beard, 2016, p. 23). course syllabi. Houghtalin (2018) has diverse purposes. The initial one was to discussed the suitability of ceramics and provide undergraduates with a set of –– Explain what complexities are entailed numismatic legends for pronunciation guidelines with which they could by the interpretation of events in 63 exercises, vocabulary acquisition, practice self-monitor the reading of the book and BCE. When providing an answer, the in grammatical forms, and overall ensure to have reflected on and paid a following statement is to be taken into contextual awareness in Ancient Greek thought to a number of key contents and account: ‘Cicero casts Catiline as a and Classical Latin language courses. The argumentations. In this latter respect, it desperado with terrible gambling debts, suggested treatment of the paratextual could be argued that providing thanks entirely to his moral failings. But elements of Beard’s book that we present undergraduate students with a document the situation cannot have been so here is congruent with the of this nature may initially appear to be simple’ (Beard, 2016, p. 45). aforementioned claims on material condescending towards them, or even culture and Classics teaching. inadvisable to the extent that it might One further aspect of thevolume hinder their autonomy and academic Chapter 2. In the Beginning contemplated here concerns Latin maturity. It is, nevertheless, worth language samples. Each chapter includes heeding that undergraduate students may –– Outline the main plot of Rome’s Latin terms and phrases designating key still be taking their first steps in how to foundational legend and name the main concepts of institutions and practices in approach the reading of titles of primary textual sources that have the realms of politics, social order, and secondary literature during the first handed it down in several different the army in ancient Rome. A list of semesters of a degree programme and, versions. You may wish to take into headings therein can be found in the third therefore, some form of guidance consideration the volume illustrations and final section of this teaching appears to be justified. Additionally, featuring iconographic motifs related proposal, entitled Latin language samples. It providing students with some orientation to that legend. requests students to focus on the with respect to the recommended morphology and semantics of a selection secondary literature of a given course –– Discuss the following statement: ‘Most of such terms and phrases. The present may further their analytical and critical “foundations” are retrospective author has grouped them into the reading skills for academic purposes as constructions, projecting back into the following five semantic fields: army; well as their progression towards greater distant past a microcosm, or imagined ethics, morality and religion; politics; academic autonomy and maturity. primitive version, of the later city’ Roman urbanism; and social institutions Finally, it is worth noting that the (Beard, 2016, p. 71). and practices. On their part, lecturers and following guidelines may be also used to instructors may wish to discuss the structure class reading seminars on this semantics of such words in class and particular title, and/or as prompts for Chapter 3. The Kings of Rome prevent their students from attributing to written work to be submitted to the them the same meaning of some lecturer or instructor. –– Name the most ancient epigraphic derivatives in modern languages Latin document that has been (instances like the nouns libertas or virtus, preserved and discuss some of the to name but two examples). Discussing questions that it poses. their etymology may contribute to a better Teaching proposal understanding of their original sense in –– In the said epigraphic document, the On the chapter contents their ancient context. term rex might bear political The third section likewise takes into implications. Discuss whether it can be account original passages from Latin considered a piece of evidence for sources that Beard most pertinently Prologue. The History of Rome claiming the existence of an organised includes throughout the chapters in order monarchy or not and why. to illustrate key issues that concern Discuss what Beard is referring to when Rome’s political institutions, the social she states that current historians address –– Discuss the possible biases in Livy’s establishment, and ideological matters. the History of Rome with priorities that account of the monarchic period. How Some of these quotes have continued to are different from those of ancient do Livy’s textual account and be used by politicians and civil groups in historians. archaeological evidence differ?

Downloaded26 from https://www.cambridge.org/coreBeard’s SPQR.. IP A address: History 170.106.33.22of Ancient Rome, on 24 as Sep Background 2021 at 03:22:16 Reading, subject in Classical to the Cambridge Latin Courses. Core terms A Teaching of use, available Proposal at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2058631019000291 –– State the consequences of the so-called determining the precise type of Chapter 4. Rome’s Great Leap Ides of March in Rome’s political history. government of each one of the 14 Forward emperors. –– Name major paintings from the Early –– Explain the meaning of the term virtus Modern period onwards that rework –– Discuss how contemporary historians in classical Latin and touch upon its that particular historical motif. address those primary sources. etymology. –– Discuss the following statement: –– Discuss the sense conveyed by the –– Discuss why the period 500 BCE – 300 ‘Pompey has a good claim to be called following statement: ‘But the 14 BCE was crucial in the history of the the first Roman Emperor’ (Beard, emperors were also heirs to the city of Rome. 2016, p. 274). problems and tensions that Augustus bequeathed’ (Beard, 2016, p. 413). –– Discuss whether Brutus and his –– Discuss what archaeological evidence Specify and discuss the problems and accolades managed to meet their reveals about the city of Rome during tensions to which Beard is alluding. political goals or not and why. the 5th century CE.

–– Refer to the main primary textual sources of the 1st century BCE Chapter 8. The Home Front Chapter 11. The Haves and documenting the Conflict of the Orders Have-Nots and discuss their ideological biases. –– Name one major source documenting the Social History of Rome from the –– Indicate what types of information st –– Explain the significance of the city of 1 century CE onwards. human bones and detritus can provide Veii in the process of territorial to the reconstruction of the social –– Topics of Social History. Discuss expansion of Rome. history of ancient Rome. pregnancy, childbirth, and life expectancy among the majority of the –– Discuss the life and work conditions of population in ancient Rome. Chapter 5. A Wider World most part of the population in ancient –– State what the main source of wealth Rome. –– Discuss the relevance of Publius was for the senatorial elite. Cornelius Scipio Africanus to the –– State the origin of the wealth of history of Ancient Rome. –– Discuss what this chapter recounts emperors. about slavery in ancient Rome. –– State who was, in Beard’s words, the first –– Indicate what the terms otium and writer who formulated crucial questions negotium designated in ancient Rome. and what those questions were. Chapter 9. The Transformations of –– Indicate what type of institutions the Augustus collegia were.

Chapter 6. New Politics –– Outline the main characteristics of the –– Discuss the habitative conditions of Principate of Augustus. lower-class social groups. –– Sallust claimed that virtus had been replaced by moral corruption. State to –– State the main textual source that –– Beard asserts that to reconstruct the what historical period, as well as to documents the period and discuss its lives of well-off groups is easier than what social and political processes this most salient bias. reconstructing those of other social ancient historian was referring. groups. Explain why. –– Outline the main changes in Rome’s –– Outline the events resulting from the urbanism under the rule of Augustus. alliance between Pompeii, Julius Caesar –– Discuss the main means of propaganda and Marcus Licinius Crassus. Chapter 12. Rome Outside Rome during his Principate. –– Discuss the events in which the –– Discuss what Augustus stated in his Gracchi were involved. testament with respect to Rome’s Chapter 10. 14 emperors territorial expansion.

–– Discuss the reaction of the members –– Outline the events of the Masada Chapter 7. From Empire to Emperors of the Senate in the aftermath of the fortress in 73 CE. death of Caligula. –– State the main ancient textual source –– Discuss whether, in Beard’s opinion, documenting the period of the mid –– Discuss the challenges posed by the events of Masada (73 CE) and the first century BCE. ancient sources when it comes to actions of the leader Boudica can be

Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/coreBeard’s SPQR. A. IPHistory address: of 170.106.33.22Ancient Rome, on as 24 Background Sep 2021 at 03:22:16 Reading, subject in Classical to the Cambridge Latin Courses. Core termsA Teaching of use, Proposalavailable at 27 https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2058631019000291 considered illustrative of the behaviour rule, what significant events took place • Social institutions and practices: of provincials when confronted with there, and whether they currently assidui, cognomen, collegia, conubium, Roman rule (or not) and why. display remains of material culture imagines, libertus, negotium, otium, corresponding to the process of proletarii, salutatio, servus –– Summarise and discuss the information Romanisation. contained in this chapter about Passages from primary sources Christianity during the time period –– Discuss the specific aspects of the addressed. Punic Wars evoked by illustrations 25, The passages below are from ancient 29, 32, as well as by the eighth plate Latin sources. Some of them come –– Discuss what the letters of Pliny the (central pages). from prose works (mainly oratory and Younger reveal about the historiography), whereas others come administration of the Roman provinces –– On the basis of this reading, outline from poetry works. They are by diverse during the Imperial period. the process of Roman conquest and writers. Provide information about the territorial expansion. You may also source title and author. Identify and –– Discuss whether the existence of a wish to refer to illustrations 10, 70, 76, discuss the historical context in which centralised government during the time and 100, among others. they were composed as well as the period covered in this chapter can be events or processes to which they ascertained or denied and why. –– Illustration 92 shows the drawing of an refer. Where deemed appropriate, epigraphic inscription. Discuss its discuss their (possible) underlying location and function. Name the political and ideological biases or Epilogue. The First Roman grammar case, gender and number of agendas. the following underlined nouns: Millennium Neptuno et Minervae templum / Pro • Carthago delenda est. This statement is salute domus divinae attributed to Cato the Elder, but its –– Discuss the significance and effects of authenticity and ultimate ancient Caracalla’s decree in the history of the –– A number of plates of this book show source have been disputed (see Little, Roman Empire. paintings by artists Mantegna, Titian, 1934). Matters of actual authorship Poussin, A. Kauffmann, Jacques-Louis and variations notwithstanding, –– Explain what the phrase ‘second- David, Maccari, and Picasso that depict discuss the historical context to which century crisis’ designates in the reworkings of historical motifs of the phrase refers. historiography of ancient Rome. ancient Rome. Comment on such paintings. • quo usque tandem abutere, Catilina, patientia –– State the hypotheses put forward by nostra? (Cic. Cat. 1.1) Beard as possible underlying causes of On the Latin language samples Caracalla’s decree. Terms and phrases • arma virumque cano (Verg. Aen. 1.1) • imperium sine fine (Verg. Aen. 1.279) On the paratextual elements of the volume Below is a selection of Latin words and phrases that Beard incorporates into her • Graecia capta ferum uictorem cepit et artes –– Early Rome and its neighbours. Select three account and discussions in order to intulit agresti Latio (Hor. Epist. 2.1. locations other than the Urbs and illustrate salient points of the chapters. 156–157) discuss their significance in the history Explain what each one of them refers to or of ancient Rome. names. Where deemed appropriate,discuss • humanitas vocabatur, cum pars servitutis esset their etymology. As far as grammatical (Tac. Agr. 21.2) –– The site of Rome. Comment on the features are concerned, indicate geographical location and orography declension, gender, and number (the • ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant of the Urbs, as well as on the civil number in which they feature here, that is). (Tac. Agr. 30.4) engineering works featured in this map. • Army: hostis, imperium • urbem Romam a principio reges habuere –– Roman Italy. On the basis of this one (Tac. Ann. 1.1) reading, discuss the process of • Ethics, Morality, and Religion: Romanisation of the Italian Peninsula. fanum, numen, sacrosanctitas, virtus Recapitulation

–– The city of Rome in the imperial period. • Politics: candidatus, civilitas, civitas sine Contextual knowledge performs an Select two public works featuring in suffragio, clementia, contiones, decemviri, important function in reading this map and state when they were built equites, gens togata, libertas, mandata, primus comprehension in a second language, as a and to what purpose. inter pares, procurator, publicani, res publica, number of theoretical and empirical tribuni plebis, tribunicia potestas studies have shown. This type of –– The Roman World. Select three locations knowledge is all the more relevant to and state in what period they fell under • Roman urbanism: colles, cubicula, reading comprehension in Classical or established contact with Roman insulae, montes, rostra Languages, given the time, cultural, and

Downloaded28 from https://www.cambridge.org/coreBeard’s SPQR.. IP A address: History 170.106.33.22of Ancient Rome, on 24 as Sep Background 2021 at 03:22:16 Reading, subject in Classical to the Cambridge Latin Courses. Core terms A Teaching of use, available Proposal at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2058631019000291 material breach between their original As a final remark,it is important to Houghtalin, L. (2018). ‘Material Culture and contexts of use during antiquity, on the note that we only hope not to have the Greek and Latin Classroom’, Teaching one hand, and the context of the dishonoured Classical Languages, 9.1, pp. 1–16. contemporary students, on the other. Beard’s book itself with this initiative. Liddel, P. (2017). ‘Greek Inscriptions: Integrating topics of ancient history into Our intention has been in fact the Insights and Resources in the Classroom and Classical Latin language course syllabi is opposite one. beyond’, The Journal of Classics Teaching, 18.35, thus most likely to result in enhanced pp. 43–47. comprehension of the Latin texts on the Tamara Lobato Beneyto part of students. The previous sections completed a Master’s degree in Little, C. E. (1934). ‘The Authenticity and have presented one suggested way to Classics at King’s College Form of Cato’s Saying “Carthago Delenda Est”’, The Classical Journal, 29.6, pp. 429–435. accomplish such integration by means of London. She is currently a a set of assignments on the reading of researcher at the Classics SPQR. A History of Ancient Beard’s book Department of the University of 1Contextual or background knowledge is also Rome, that addresses the period between Salamanca. tlb@usal.es termed content schemata in the literature of the the Iron Age in the Italian Peninsula and field of Applied Linguistics and Second the year 212 CE. The Cambridge scholar Language Acquisition. An in-depth discussion combines a most engaging style with of the role of content schemata in second academic rigour, providing her very own References language learning and reading comprehension account of the period on grounds of a lies beyond the scope and purpose of this teaching proposal. For some detailed accounts sharp analysis of a large variety of Beard, M. (2016). SPQR. A History of Ancient of the subject, the reader is referred to the sources. This title thus provides students Rome, London: Profile Books. seminal works of reference cited in the of Classical Latin with a sound introductory section. introduction to the original context of use Carrell, P. (1982). ‘Three Components of of this language. Furthermore, it Background Knowledge in Reading 2It is worth drawing attention to the plate Comprehension’, Language Learning, 33, (implicitly) introduces undergraduates to featuring The Peutinger Table, a map of the pp. 183–201. the historiographical research techniques Roman Empire dating back to the 13th century, although possibly based on a former that scholars apply to the study of ancient Carrell, P. (1983). ‘Some Issues in Studying the one that had been supposedly exhibited in Rome. In the latter respect, this reading Role of Schemata, or Background Knowledge, Rome during the 1st century BCE. It is most also stimulates the development of critical in Second Language Comprehension’, Reading adequate to illustrate the development of and analytical skills. in a Foreign Language, 1, pp. 81–92. cartography throughout time.