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- Title
EMPEDOCLES IN ROME: RAPE AND THE ROMAN ETHOS.
- Authors
Arieti, James A.
- Abstract
The article discusses the meaning of rape and sexual violence in the history of Rome. According to the article, Titus Livy, the great historian in the age of Augustus, has found a scheme to explain for Rome's creative violence and the pattern in the stories of rape. Through Empedocles, a Greek pre-Socratic philosopher, Livy found the union of Venus and Mars, of passion and war, and a fundamental to the Roman soul. Furthermore, Rome has considered the gods Mars and Venus as her divine parents. Rape was stated to be a mixing of Mars and Venus because Mars is violent, forcible, and destructive, while Venus is sexual and creative. Therefore, it the representative action of Rome which combines opposite forces such as destruction and creation.
- Subjects
RAPE; SEX crimes; EMPEDOCLES, of Akragas, ca. 492 B.C.-ca. 432 B.C.; LIVY, ca. 59 B.C.-17; PRE-Socratic philosophers; MARS (Roman deity); VENUS (Roman deity); ROMAN gods; ROMAN history
- Publication
Clio, 1980, Vol 10, Issue 1, p5
- ISSN
0884-2043
- Publication type
Article