IV the Roman Paterfamilias
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This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree (e.g. PhD, MPhil, DClinPsychol) at the University of Edinburgh. Please note the following terms and conditions of use: This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, which are retained by the thesis author, unless otherwise stated. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. Elite Father and Son Relationships in Republican Rome Lauren Murray PhD The University of Edinburgh 2014 Signed declaration This thesis has been composed by the candidate, the work is the candidate's own and the work has not been submitted for any other degree or professional qualification except as specified. Signed: [2] Contents Abstract Acknowledgements Abbreviations Introduction ................................................................................................................ 11 Scholarship on the Roman Family ..................................................................... 14 Literary and Historical Sources .......................................................................... 24 Legal Sources and Patria Potestas .................................................................... 33 Demography ....................................................................................................... 39 Social Ideals and Social Reality ......................................................................... 44 I: Roman State, Roman Statesman, Roman Father ................................................... 54 The Ideology of Fatherhood ............................................................................... 56 The Patres ........................................................................................................... 57 City as Father ..................................................................................................... 62 II: Images of the Aristocratic Father .......................................................................... 75 Section 1: The Greek Interpretation ....................................................................... 78 Section 2: The ius vitae necisque ........................................................................... 88 Brutus and his sons ............................................................................................ 94 Titus Manlius Torquatus (cos. 347 BC) ........................................................... 106 III: The Roman Son .................................................................................................. 123 Section 1: Social Ideals and the Roman Son ........................................................ 126 Pietas ................................................................................................................ 127 Upholding the Family Name ............................................................................ 135 Section 2: Social Expectations of Father and Son Relationships in the Pro Sex. Roscio Amerino ................................................................................................... 143 Duty and the Family ......................................................................................... 144 Natural Feeling ................................................................................................. 150 IV: The Roman Paterfamilias .................................................................................. 158 Section 1: Social Ideals and the Roman Father .................................................... 161 Literary Dedications ......................................................................................... 163 Paternal Exempla .............................................................................................. 166 Authority .......................................................................................................... 169 Section 2: Self-presentation and the Domus ........................................................ 173 The Family and the City ................................................................................... 174 Influence in the State ........................................................................................ 177 Section 3: Adoption and Roman Family Concerns .............................................. 182 [4] Forms of Roman Adoption .............................................................................. 182 Family Ties ...................................................................................................... 185 Case Study: Aemilius Paullus and his Sons ..................................................... 189 V: The Relationship between Father and Son .......................................................... 196 Section 1: Upbringing .......................................................................................... 198 Birth ................................................................................................................. 199 Childhood ......................................................................................................... 203 Education.......................................................................................................... 209 Section 2: Roman Fathers and Adult Sons ........................................................... 216 Literary Depictions........................................................................................... 216 Conflict ............................................................................................................. 223 Family Reputation ............................................................................................ 230 Section 3: Death and Its Implications .................................................................. 233 Grief ................................................................................................................. 234 Continuity ......................................................................................................... 244 VI: The Ideal of the Roman Father .......................................................................... 252 Republican Fathers ........................................................................................... 254 Romulus ........................................................................................................... 257 [5] The Aeneid ....................................................................................................... 260 Father Anchises ................................................................................................ 263 Father Aeneas ................................................................................................... 267 Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 274 Appendix .................................................................................................................. 280 Bibliography ............................................................................................................. 283 [6] Abstract The focus of this study is aristocratic fathers and sons in the middle and late Roman Republic (264 – 27 B.C.). By considering legal, literary, and material evidence, it addresses the behaviour of elite families throughout this period. Although there is a great deal of important research conducted on family relations in the ancient world more generally, there is no extensive study which analyses the bonds of duty, obligation, and affection between fathers and sons in republican Rome. It is this gap in the scholarship which is addressed in my thesis. The key aspects of this relationship are considered through several interconnected chapters. Each reflects the social nature of this analysis, and demonstrates that traditional values, dynastic considerations, and social ideals promoted a sense of common identity and unity within the household. Although the hierarchical nature of Roman family life also provided opportunities for conflict between father and son, ultimately the relationship between the two was governed by these three concerns, as well as the close correlation between public and private in the lives of the republican elite. The discussion begins by considering the high valuation of fatherhood at Rome, evidenced by the use of terms derived from pater, and argues that the qualities expected of this individual were similar to those associated with the ideal statesman (Ch. I). From there, depictions of the Roman father by Greek and Roman authors are analysed to show that the former often emphasised the morality of the episode in question, while the latter stressed the conflict between the well-being of the family and the safety of the state (Ch. II). The argument then moves on to explore social expectations. Cicero’s Pro Roscio Amerino provides an example in which the ideals for father and son relationships are manipulated in order to persuade an audience (Ch. III). This shows that pietas, duty, companionship, and support towards