There is still a widespread idea that ancient Roman culture is not original, because the Romans tried to imitate the unattainable examples of classical Greek culture, adopting everything and creating practically nothing of our own. However, the latest research shows the original nature of the culture of Ancient Rome, because it represents a certain unity that arose as a result of a combination of the original with borrowed cultural innovations. We should not forget the essential point that the ancient Roman and ancient Greek cultures were formed and developed on the basis of the ancient civil community. Its entire structure predetermined the scale of basic values ​​that guided all its fellow citizens in one way or another. These values ​​included: the idea of ​​the significance and original unity of the civil community with the inextricable connection between the good of the individual and the good of the entire collective; the idea of ​​the supreme power of the people; the idea of ​​the closest connection between the civil community and the gods and heroes who care about its welfare. This perception of the deity in both Greece and Rome opened up space for free search in the field of philosophy, science, art and religion itself, not bound by dogmas and canons. The absence of a priestly caste is also significant. It should also be noted that the political life of both the Greek city-states and Rome, the struggle of leaders of various directions who sought to enlist the support of the people's assembly, open trials, which played a significant role in politics and attracted masses of listeners, stimulated the development of oratory, the ability to persuade, and contributed to the refinement of logical argumentation determined the methods of philosophy and science. The similarity of many basic features created favorable conditions for the mutual influence of cultures, and above all, for the influence of Greek culture on Roman culture.

But similarity does not mean identity - Rome differed in many ways from the Greek, primarily Athenian, polis. From the very beginning of its existence, Rome waged constant wars with its neighbors, which largely determined its organization, its entire structure of life and history. If the Greeks created myths about gods and demigods, then for the Romans the center of their mythology was Rome itself, its heroic victorious people, those who fought and died for its greatness. The gods, according to the Romans, only helped them win, thereby showing their special affection for the Roman people. Iron military discipline required military virtues - courage, loyalty, perseverance, stern inflexibility, proud dignity. Such virtues were required not only for war, but also for peaceful life, for fulfilling the duty of a good citizen. The relations between patricians and plebeians also had their own characteristics - the struggle for various laws, wrested by the plebeians from their opponents, acquired paramount importance, which led to special role rights in the life of society. Both sides took advantage of religion, which was initially very close to law. The close connection of religion with law, with political struggle, on the one hand, increased its importance in the life of society, on the other, contributed to its formalization, detailing the various ways of communicating with the gods, recognizing their will. This excluded flights of fancy and personal initiative in the religious sphere, which did not become a source of poetic creativity. The mentioned differences largely determined the path of the Romans' assimilation of Greek culture.

It is not surprising that here we are faced with an interesting phenomenon - if Greek art and literature were successfully “transplanted” onto Roman soil, then Greek mathematics and logic did not take root on it. Logic ceased to be a moment of scientific research; the logical knowledge of antiquity seemed to “dry up” due to the intellectual level of the “consumers” of Roman culture, their practicality and sobriety. As a result, developed logical traditions became impoverished, for the early Latin translations characterized by superficiality and confusion in terminology. All this is explained by the specifics of Roman culture: strength, not sophistication, power, not speed, massiveness, not beauty, utilitarianism, not harmony in everyday life, fact, not imagination, dominates in art; mercilessly realistic is spoiled in painting; majestic sculpture is characteristic of it. “Strength clothed in greatness” was the Roman ideal that blocked the development of logic and mathematics. It is clear that the Graeco-Roman, ancient culture that gradually formed as the Roman power grew, which turned into the Roman Empire, not only spread in the Roman provinces, but also absorbed the achievements of the cultures of the Etruscans, Western and Eastern peoples. However, absorbing foreign cultural values ​​and samples, Roman culture evolves in its social logic, maintaining its integrity at different stages of evolution and borrowing only what does not contradict this integrity.

Over the course of several centuries, Ancient Rome evolved from polis to empire, and the Roman from citizen to subject with his strong sense of order. A citizen was characterized by direct connections in the community-citizen system, i.e. connections of complicity. Very great importance had the fact that in Rome there was equality of citizens in the sense of legal responsibility before the law, but there was no equality in political and social sphere. The decisive role here was played by qualifications - the size of property and origin, which determined the citizen’s place in the social hierarchy, his rights and responsibilities. Thus, the people's assembly was the highest electoral and legislative body, but ordinary people could not expect to occupy high positions; this was available only to persons with high qualifications. The Roman citizen was guided by the following system of values: courage, bravery, endurance, hard work, stern dignity, unyielding honesty, justice, freedom. Characteristic and specifically Roman was the inextricable connection between freedom and economic independence: “salary makes a man a slave.” An economically dependent person did not dare to express an opinion that was not pleasing to the one to whom he owed something.

Of interest is the Roman ideal of a republic, to which Rome was close in the era from the final victory of the plebs to the middle of the 1st century. BC. The most complete, albeit embellished, description of it was given by the historian Polybius. He emphasizes the perfection of the political system of Rome, its “mixed structure”, combining elements of monarchy (the power of the consuls), aristocracy (the authority of the Senate) and democracy (the right of the people's assembly to pass laws, decide issues of war and peace, elect magistrates, punish or bestow honors as a reward for valor). The mutual control of all these institutions, the coordination of their actions, their dependence on each other give the entire system exceptional strength and the ability to conquer other peoples and rule them. As a result, a global Roman Empire arose.

This world power absorbed many of the cultural and technical achievements of the conquered peoples, assimilated, preserved them and gave them the status of universality. Although Rome demanded absolute social discipline from the individual, in the spirit of ancient traditions, it did not try to destroy individual originality, but, on the contrary, stimulated and approved any initiative in the interests of the empire. All subjects of the empire depended only on the emperor, who became the supreme owner of the land, the source of law and the supreme court of appeal, and in this sense replaced the Roman people. Thanks to service in the army and the bureaucratic apparatus, there were some opportunities for advancement up the social ladder, but they were limited by the preservation of the class principle and largely depended not only and not so much on real merits and abilities, but on the patronage of the emperor and influential people, i.e. from the ability to flatter, intrigue, adapt. Thus, in contrast to a citizen, for a subject, the determining factors were the connections in the empire-subject system, i.e. connections of subordination. This transition from citizen to subject also determined the corresponding evolution of the value system, in which there was a peculiar mixture of primordially Roman values ​​with new values ​​oriented towards the psychology of the subject.

Along with the social history of Ancient Rome, the evolution of its religion took place from the oldest communal religion, in which there were no anthropomorphic gods (they were represented as undefined forces), to Christianity. All researchers of Roman religion note that the introduction of the cult of the Capitoline Trinity (Jupiter, Mars and Quirinus, who already had individuality and their inherent functions) and the construction of the Capitoline Temple were due to the consolidation of Rome as a city and the policy of the kings of the Etruscan dynasty, as well as the construction of the Temple of Diana on the Aventine and Jupiter Latiaris was dictated by the transition to Rome of hegemony in the Latin Union; that the triad of Libor, Libora and Ceres was plebeian, and the cult of the Dioscuri was equestrian; that in the era of the Republic and under the Empire, despite the reforms of Augustus and the imperial cult, the Roman religion ceases to act on the minds and souls of people, and in search of new forms of communication with the deity, the immortality of the soul, they turn to Eastern cults, mysteries, revelations, astrology, magic, to philosophy, closer to religion; that emperors, trying to influence their subjects, sought to make their power theocratic. Thus, there is a relationship between the development of the social structures of Ancient Rome and changes in the religious sphere, the status of which was very high. The rise in the social status of religion was also facilitated by the search for means of gaining spiritual freedom, which was led by ancient Roman philosophers, contrasting the body with the soul, matter with the spirit, and the world with God.

It is significant that with the partial disintegration of rural communities and the gradual dissolution of urban civil communities in the empire, with the establishment of a compulsory imperial cult and the deepening of social inequality, various social strata, in search of answers to the questions facing them, in different ways, come to the search for a single, supreme, common to all humanity god. And this god, and not the sanction of some more or less narrow collective, becomes the source moral standards, the guarantor of a correct and, therefore, happy life on earth and bliss beyond the grave. This was not yet monotheism, since a whole hierarchy of intermediaries, identified with traditional gods, was built between the supreme god and man. The latter were not denied by those who honored the gods closer to man (Sylvanus, Hercules, Dionysus). There was no obligatory dogma in these religions and, accordingly, the concept of heresy. But nevertheless, they prepared the victory of the world religion - Christianity, which most fully responded to the needs of various social strata of that time.

The importance of law was great in ancient Roman culture, the study, commentary and development of which was considered a matter worthy of all respect. A good legal education received in special schools could open the way to the upper classes for people who did not belong to them by origin; most famous example Cicero may serve. For many centuries, Roman jurists developed and improved the law, adapting it to the real needs of life; Roman law became a model for subsequent legislators and formed the basis of the Napoleonic Code and a number of other normative documents of New and Contemporary times.

We know practically nothing about ancient Roman law. From the “royal laws” only meager passages interpreting sacred law have reached us. The basis for all further development of law was the Laws of the XII Tables, compiled in 451-450. BC. The Romans’ respect for these laws was partly determined by their general conservatism, the cult of the “morals of their ancestors,” and partly by the fact that certain foundations of the Roman civil community on the basis of which they were formed, with all modifications, continued to live until complete disintegration ancient world and his culture. The laws of the XII tables also contained a number of elements of customary law inherent in other nations closely related to each other.

At the same time, the Laws of the XII Tables were already distinguished by a number of features specific to the Roman civil community, which retained their significance at all stages of the evolution of Roman law. First of all, these are provisions concerning agrarian relations, according to which the civil community continued to be the supreme owner of the land and controlled its management. Also indicative is the right to acquire land as a result of two years of use of it; it continued to operate throughout Roman history. Only a Roman citizen could own land on the territory of Rome, hence the formula “mine according to Quirite law” and the inextricable connection between citizenship and land ownership.

The community's concern for good cultivation of the land also affected the special structure of the Roman family, according to the Romans themselves, which had no analogues among any other peoples. Its peculiarity, as is known, was the exclusive right of the father to all resources belonging to the family: real and movable property and people under his authority - wife, sons with their wives and children, slaves. He could arbitrarily dispose of their labor force, could hire them out, sell them, punish them up to and including death, although custom required a family court in such cases. It is usually believed that such power of the father over all the resources of the family ensured the most effective cultivation of the land in the difficult farming conditions of Ancient Rome.

A number of provisions of the Laws of the XII Tables concern the rights of Roman citizens. First of all, this is the article according to which the last decree of the people is a binding law; then a law prohibiting the execution of a Roman citizen without the sanction of the highest legislative and judicial authority. This also includes the prohibition of conferring any privileges on individuals. Thus, the equality of citizens before the law was affirmed and the possibility, so common in other early societies, of providing a person who was not one of the elected masters with the administration of any territory, collecting taxes from the population, etc., was excluded. Control over the entire territory of Rome and its population belonged only to a collective of citizens. Perhaps the law that punished the death penalty for composing and publishing a song that dishonored someone was also connected with this.

According to the Laws of the XII Tables, other crimes were punishable by death: the night theft of someone else's harvest, for which the culprit was crucified on a tree and doomed to Ceres, arson of a building or grain compressed and lying near the house, for which the culprit was chained, beaten and burned. This also includes permission to kill with impunity a thief caught at the scene of a crime at night, and during the day - a thief who defended himself with a weapon. False witnesses were thrown from the Tarpeian rock; A judge or arbitrator convicted of bribery, a person who raised enemies against Rome or betrayed a citizen to the enemies, was executed. According to Augustine, the Laws of the XII Tables provided, in addition to execution and fines, also fetters, flogging, talion, dishonor, exile and slavery.

As class contradictions deepened, punishments for Roman citizens became more and more severe, and their equality before the law disappeared due to social differentiation, as evidenced by the cruel punishments issued by Augustus and his successors. The court ceased to be a public spectacle, processes under autocracy lost their political significance, the role of emotions decreased accordingly, and a subtle and comprehensive knowledge of the law, the ability to interpret it and apply it to a specific case increased in value. Meanwhile, the law became more and more complex, which led to its systematization, which is represented by the Guy's Institutes. It should also be noted that the jurists of the time of the Empire were well-known in their attitude towards ancient law: on the one hand, it was recognized as an unshakable basis, on the other, new trends paved the way for themselves. During this same period, the famous principle of the “presumption of innocence” was finally formed, according to which, if for one reason or another the question of a person’s status or the right of a slave to freedom came to court and the case turned out to be doubtful, it should have been decided in favor of freedom. As a result of long evolution, Roman law became flexible, which allowed it to be adequate to the changing social reality.

Roman science was also unique, proceeding from the ideas of an eternal, animate, indivisible and perfect cosmos - in it there was an antinomy between nature and man. Violent methods of mastering nature, the desire to correct or improve the initially established part-whole relationship at all costs (which is typical for modern technical civilization) were excluded by the very structure of the Roman world order. Roman science was not the dominant force in society due to the peculiarities of the existing culture; there was no social institution of scientists and groups of narrow specialists, like modern ones.

In the Roman Empire, a distinction was made between speculative (theoretical) and empirical (practical) sciences; This also included the arts (sciences) that satisfied the needs of luxury. Practical sciences are closer to reality and are dictated by necessity: these are medicine, agriculture, construction and military affairs, the art of navigation, law and other vital areas of knowledge. Studies in these sciences were traditionally considered worthy of a “noble” person and included knowledge of grammar, rhetoric, dialectics, arithmetic, astronomy, geometry and music. These subjects were part of the circle of Greek education and upbringing, and were also the basis of all practical knowledge throughout ancient history.

Speculative (theoretical) sciences are not directly related to practice (Aristotle put them above all others). The most important of them is philosophy, which is divided into physics, ethics and logic, which constitutes the method of philosophical presentation. Physics deals with questions of the structure of the universe and the laws of nature; ethics examines a person’s connections with society and his place in the cosmic whole, his position in the world and social order. Roman philosophy had all the philosophical schools of antiquity - Platonism, Stoicism, Pythagoreanism, skepticism, Epicureanism, etc., which allowed the ancient Romans to comprehend their position in the world.

The originality of Roman science is due to the nature of the worldview, in which Greek, Hellenistic and purely Roman cultural traditions were intertwined. Already in the era of the Republic, Roman culture became bilingual - the highest Roman families spoke and read Greek, which was considered a sign of education and good manners; at the same time, thanks to the work of philological scientists, the Latin language is developing a categorical apparatus capable of conveying all the subtleties and complexities of the Hellenistic cultural and scientific tradition. Therefore, science in the Roman Empire became multilingual (Apulei wrote in Latin, and Marcus Aurelius and Aelian wrote in Greek). In addition, Roman science was multidirectional: the theoretical heritage was the privilege of foreigners, while people of practical knowledge like Vitruvius, Celsus, Frontinus sought to use the achievements of the Greeks for the glory of Rome. And the accumulated stock of practical knowledge and experience - Roman civil engineering, Roman sanitation and hygiene, etc. - was the pride of Rome. If we take into account that no culture with centuries-old traditions can exist on knowledge borrowed from outside without adapting it to its own value system, then the uniqueness of Roman science becomes understandable.

Roman art also has its own appearance, which arose from a mixture of local (mainly Etruscan) art traditions with Greek influence. Roman art was also influenced by various peoples - the Germans, Gauls, Celts, etc., who were part of the multinational Roman Empire, but these influences did not significantly change the basic features of Roman art. His art form is the result of ideological preconditions specific to Rome. Roman art is a continuation of Greek, therefore, thanks to the admiration of the Romans for Greek art, most of the creations of the Greek classics were preserved in Roman copies. From the Etruscans Roman art received its main inheritance.

Roman architecture took a lot from Etruscan architecture - the round shape of the plan and arch, which was characteristic of the city gates of Etruscan cities. The Romans turned the arch into a triumphal portal through which the winner passed. This form, such as the design of the vault, was preserved in the new European architecture.

The Romans created huge architectural structures and buildings. Forums, baths, amphitheatres, palaces, temples, fortress walls, etc. were built, which even today delight with their monumentality, thoughtfulness and beauty of architectural forms.

In the field of sculpture, the Romans were also followers of the Etruscans. They borrowed the custom of creating funerary masks and portraits on the sarcophagi of the dead, and from these tomb masks the Roman portrait developed widely based on a realistic reflection of reality. The Roman sculptor did not create an idealized image in a portrait, but depicted specific individuals, emphasizing the portrait resemblance. Roman sculpture did not create generalized images of athletes, as was customary among the Greeks. In general, the naked body is rarely found among the Romans, and if it does occur, it is always as if with some kind of “excuse.” Roman monumental sculpture creates statues dressed in togas, seriously engaged in their work.

Roman art also had significant success in painting. Created original painting, different from Greek. The Roman painter first of all strives to reflect the surrounding nature and arrange the figures in space. He does not achieve a realistic reflection of reality, but creates certain illusions of it, emphasizes the internal space linearly, although without achieving perspective (which appears much later). All this gives Roman painting a certain advantage over Greek.

Roman poetry is also beautiful, the golden age of which began in the era of Augustus. One of famous poets is Virgil Maron, who created the poems “Georgics”, “Aeneid” and “Shepherd’s Songs”. In the work of Horace Flaccus, Latin poetry reached its highest form of development. Taking Greek lyric poets, especially Alcaeus, as a model, he created several odes. In them he glorified the personality and work of Augustus, Roman weapons, as well as the joys of love and friendship and the contemplative quiet life of the poet-philosopher. An outstanding poet of the “golden age” was Ovid Nason, who wrote many poems about love. His poem “The Art of Love” was a kind of instruction to lovers on how to achieve love, which aroused the wrath of Augustus, who saw in Ovid’s poems a parody of his legislation on strengthening the family life of the Roman nobility and exiled the poet outside the empire. And subsequently, Roman poetry and prose of Juvenal, Apuleius, Seneca and others became widespread.

It should be emphasized the pragmatic nature of all Roman art, the task of which was to strengthen the existing order. In ancient Rome, to use modern terminology, programs of mass influence on the population were carried out; they were expensive, but the effect was enormous. These included gladiator fights and “combat programs”: “Sometimes the arena was filled with water, fish and various sea monsters were released into the water; naval battles were also staged here, for example, the Battle of Salamis between the Athenians and the Persians or the battle of the Corinthians with the Corcyrians. In 46 BC. a battle was arranged between the Syrian and Egyptian fleets on a lake that Caesar deliberately ordered to be dug on the Campus Martius; 2,000 oarsmen and 1,000 sailors took part in the battle.

A similar battle was staged by Augustus in 2 AD. on an artificial lake on the other side of the Tiber. The number of participants reached 3000. But all these games were overshadowed by a large naval battle, which was staged during the reign of Claudius on Lake Fucin. Here two fleets opposed each other - the Sicilian and the Rhodian, and 19,000 people fought on both sides” (P. Giro).

The principle of “bread and circuses”, characteristic of the way of life of Ancient Rome, had ideological significance and carried moral and political information to the audience. The spectacles were very effective means consolidation of power, be it in republican or imperial Rome. There is a story that one day Augustus reproached the pantomime Pylades for his rivalry with his partner, to which Pylades replied: “It is to your advantage, Caesar, that the people are busy with us.” The spectacles pursued a very specific goal - to give the thoughts of the crowd a certain direction in favor of the existing regime. This was achieved by the splendor and luxury of festivals, spectacles and buildings that influenced the imagination and fantasy of the masses.

Studies of various aspects of the Roman way of life reveal a certain universal tendency in it. It turns out that design principles in the field of artistic design, categories of theoretical thought and deposited in popular consciousness The image of social reality reveals a certain isomorphism in Ancient Rome. They are united by a common idea of ​​​​the changeable surface of existence, which envelops its constant basis - a half-concept-half-image, which, however, had indisputable foundations in objective reality and was realized in it. This is what can be called the internal form of culture.

It is clear that although Rome grew from a small city-state into a gigantic empire, its people retained the old ceremonies and customs almost unchanged. In light of this, it is not surprising that the shocking display of wealth caused by some Romans' use of lectica (stretchers) caused widespread irritation. It is rooted not so much in politics or ideology, but in those hidden, but indisputably living layers of social consciousness, where the centuries-old historical experience of the people, which has been outlived on the surface, has been molded into forms of everyday behavior, into unconscious tastes and aversions, into the traditions of life. At the end of the republic and in the 1st century. AD Fantastic amounts of money circulated in Rome. Emperor Vitellius “ate” 900 million sesterces in a year, Nero and Claudius’ temporary worker Vibius Crispus was richer than Emperor Augustus. Money was the main value in life. But the general idea of ​​what is moral and proper was still rooted in natural communal forms of life, and monetary wealth was desirable, but at the same time somehow unclean and shameful. Augustus's wife Livia herself spun wool in the atrium of the imperial palace, the princesses enacted laws against luxury, Vespasian saved pennies at a time, Pliny glorified ancient frugality, and eight Syrian lectionaries, each of whom should have cost at least half a million sesterces, insulted the money laid down in time immemorial. but understandable to everyone ideas about what is decent and acceptable.

The everyday necessity of life was felt as reprehensible, as contrary to the vague, violated, but omnipresent and intelligible norm - “the mores of the ancestors,” and this constant comparison of this directly visible, everyday existence with the distant, but immutable paradigm of ancient sanctions and restrictions, virtues and prohibitions constitutes one one of the most striking and specific features of Roman culture. Life and development, correlated with the archaic norm, suggested either its constant violation and therefore contained something crisis-ridden and immoral, or required external conformity with it contrary to the natural course of events of reality itself and therefore contained something cunning and hypocritical. This was just a universal tendency that explains a lot in Roman history and Roman culture.

At the end of the 5th century. Ancient Rome like world empire ceased to exist, but its cultural heritage did not perish. Today it is an essential ingredient of Western culture. The Roman cultural heritage shaped and was embodied in the thinking, languages ​​and institutions of the Western world. A certain influence of ancient Roman culture is visible both in the classical architecture of public buildings and in the scientific nomenclature constructed from the roots of the Latin language; many of its elements are difficult to isolate, so firmly have they entered the flesh and blood of everyday culture, art and literature. We are no longer talking about the principles of classical Roman law, which underlies the legal systems of many Western states and the Catholic Church, built on the basis of the Roman administrative system.

INTRODUCTION

At the beginning of the 1st millennium BC. ancient eastern civilizations lost priority in social development and gave way to a new cultural center that arose in the Mediterranean and was called “ancient civilization.” It is customary to include the history and culture of Ancient Greece, as well as Ancient Rome.

In my work, I would like to follow the main directions of development of Roman culture and highlight a number of features in it. Also, during the analysis, try to determine how great the influence of the cultures of the conquered countries was. Can the culture of Ancient Rome even be considered an independent phenomenon, or did it develop through endless borrowing? Moreover, could the cultural factor somehow contribute to the collapse of the empire? These are the questions that I will try to answer in my work.

The center of the future great power - the city of Rome - arose in Latium, in central Italy, in the lower reaches of the Tiber River. An ancient parable, transmitted by Roman historians - Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Titus Livy and the poet Virgil, attributes the founding of the city to the legendary Romulus and dates this event to 754 - 753. BC. on the day of celebration of the shepherd goddess Paleia (April 21).

For more than twelve centuries (8th century BC - 5th century AD), Roman culture existed, which was a more complex phenomenon than Greek. Rome, later than Greece, appeared on the stage of world history and was the capital of an immense empire that captured all the territories around the Mediterranean. The very word "Rome" was synonymous with greatness, glory and military prowess, wealth and high culture.

The Roman mentality was sharply different from the Greek. If the Greeks were an amazingly gifted people in the field of artistic creativity, then the Romans had the greatest ability for practical activities. This main feature Roman character left its mark on Roman culture.

The Romans were good, disciplined soldiers, excellent organizers and administrators, legislators and lawyers. Much success They achieved in the field of town planning and urban improvement, they were excellent rural owners. The Romans created outstanding architectural monuments that amaze with the perfection of engineering technology.

The history of ancient Roman civilization is a complex phenomenon. The population of ancient Italy consisted of multilingual peoples who gradually submitted to the authority of Rome. By Ancient Rome as a whole we mean not only the city of Rome of the ancient era, but also all the countries and peoples it conquered that were part of the colossal Roman power - from the British Isles to Egypt. The Roman Empire was the largest state, covering all territories adjacent to the Mediterranean. Over a long period (IV century BC - III century), the Roman Republic from a small city-state turned into a world slave-holding power, which was based on imperial power.

“All roads lead to Rome,” says the proverb, as travelers and traders flocked here from all over the world.

The entire cultural system of Ancient Rome was devoted to justifying the superiority of the Roman political system, educating the Romans into good citizens, proud of their belonging to the “master people.” The main value for the Romans was Rome itself, the Roman people, destined to conquer other peoples and rule them for their own happiness. The Roman Empire developed on the basis of large-scale slavery and agriculture, the conquest of vast territories, the conquest of many peoples and cultures, which necessitated the creation of a huge bureaucratic apparatus and the development of sophisticated political methods of management.

The history of ancient Roman culture is divided into three main stages:

.Early or royal period (VIII - VI centuries BC)

.Roman Republic (v - 1st centuries BC)

.Roman Empire (1st - 5th centuries AD)

The basis of Roman art was the ancient Italian culture, in which the art of the Etruscans was of leading importance. The Etruscans inhabited these lands from the 1st millennium BC. e. and created an advanced civilization. Etruria was a strong maritime power. Skilled metallurgists, shipbuilders, traders, builders and pirates, the Etruscans sailed throughout the Mediterranean Sea, assimilating the cultural traditions of many peoples inhabiting its coast, creating a high and unique culture. They began to create something new that the ancient Romans later developed: engineering structures, monumental wall painting, realistic sculptural portraits. It was from the Etruscans that the Romans subsequently borrowed the experience of urban planning, craft techniques, technology for making iron, glass, concrete, the secret sciences of the priests and some customs, for example, celebrating a victory with a triumph.

However, a powerful cultural movement began in Rome only at the end of the 3rd century. BC. its main feature was the influence of Greek culture, Greek language and education. Numerous figures of Roman culture of that time - prose writers, philosophers, doctors, architects, artists - were overwhelmingly not Romans.

Rome exerted its influence on the Hellenistic territories it conquered. Thus, a synthesis of Greek and Roman cultures was formed, the result of which was the late antique Greco-Roman culture (I-V centuries AD), which formed the basis of the civilization of Byzantium, Western Europe and many Slavic states.

RELIGION AND MYTHOLOGY

For ancient period Roman history is especially characterized by the cult of family-tribal patron spirits. First of all, these included manna - the souls of deceased ancestors; The ancient Romans believed in the existence of the afterlife, where the souls of the dead go - this is Orcus and Elysium. Penates were also revered - the patron spirits of the house and laras, who were patron spirits with broader functions; there are known references to laras of crossroads, roads, navigation, etc. The cult of the hearth fire, personified in the goddess Vesta, also occupied an important place. IN ancient beliefs Traces of totelism can also be traced, for example, the legend of the she-wolf who suckled Romulus and Remus. There were also agrarian cults.

Later, some tribal gods turned into objects of state cult, becoming patron gods of the city-state. The most ancient gods include Jupiter, Mars, Quirinus (Romulus), who were the most important for the Romans. If the first two have correspondences among the Greeks, then the god Quirinus has no analogues in the Greek pantheon.

One of the revered purely Italian deities was Janus, depicted with two faces, as the deity of entry and exit, of all beginnings. The Olympian gods were considered the patrons of the Roman community and were revered by the entire civil community. Among the plebeians, the divine trinity was especially popular: Ceres, Libera-Proserpina - the goddess of vegetation and the underworld, and Liber - the god of wine and fun.

One of the most popular goddesses of Rome is Vesta, the goddess of the hearth and the fire that burns in it. Vestal priestesses served in the temple of Vesta, taking a vow of virginity and chastity. Girls aged 6-10 years old were selected very carefully, without the slightest defect. For ten years they underwent training, then took initiation, received the name Amata in addition to their own, and served in the temple for ten years. For violating the vow of chastity, the punishment was cruel: the sinner was buried in the ground alive. For minor offenses they could be flogged. The Vestals enjoyed great honor and respect. Insulting them was punishable by death. After serving for ten years, they spent another ten training the younger generation of priestesses. After all this, the vestal virgin could return to the family and even get married.

The Romans had many fertility gods: Flora - the goddess of blooming flowers, Pomona - the goddess of apple trees, Faun and Faun - deities of forests, groves and fields, and others.

Mythology was practically absent, there were also no images of gods - their symbols were worshiped, so the symbol of Vesta was fire, Mars was a spear. All the deities were completely faceless. The Roman did not dare to assert with complete certainty that he knew the real name of the god or that he could distinguish whether it was a god or a goddess. In his prayers, he also maintained the same caution and said: “Jupiter, Most Good, Greatest, or if you wish to be called by some other name.” And when making a sacrifice, he said: “Are you a god or a goddess, are you a man or a woman?” On the Palatine (one of the seven hills on which Ancient Rome was located) there is still an altar on which there is no name, but only an evasive formula: “To God or goddess, husband or woman,” and the gods themselves had to decide who owns the sacrifices made on this altar.

Roman mythology is characterized by the animation and deification of abstract concepts and values, such as Freedom, Valor, Harmony. Slava especially stood out. In honor of outstanding commanders, emperors and their victories, Arches of Triumph were erected, which depicted the exploits of the triumphant.

After the conquest of Greece, there is some transformation of the image of the Roman gods and their rapprochement with the Greek: Jupiter - Zeus, Juno - Hera, Minerva - Athena, Venus - Aphrodite, Mars - Ares, Neptune - Poseidon, Mercury - Hermes, Bacchus - Dionysus, Diana - Artemis , Vulcan - Hephaestus, Saturn - Uranus, Ceres - Demeter. Among the Roman gods, under the influence of Greek religious ideas, the main Olympic gods stood out: Jupiter - the god of the sky, thunder and lightning, Mars - the god of war, Minerva - the goddess of wisdom, the patroness of crafts, Venus - the goddess of love and fertility, Vulcan - the god of fire and blacksmithing, Ceres is the goddess of vegetation, Apollo is the god of the sun and light, Juno is the patroness of women and marriage, Mercury is the messenger of the Olympic gods, the patron of travelers, trade, Neptune is the god of the sea, Diana is the goddess of the moon.

Before starting a war with any people, the Romans tried to lure the gods of this people to their side, promising these gods all the necessary sacrifices.

The Roman pantheon never remained closed; foreign deities were accepted into its composition. The inclusion of new gods was believed to strengthen the power of the Romans. Thus, the Romans borrowed almost the entire Greek pantheon, and at the end of the 3rd century. BC. veneration of the Great Mother of the Gods from Phrygia was introduced.

Slaves who arrived in Rome and Italy professed their own cults, thereby spreading other religious views.

The priests of the gods were considered officials, and in the late Republican period they were elected. The priests observed the cult of individual gods, the order in the temples, prepared sacrificial animals, monitored the accuracy of prayers and ritual actions, and could give advice on which deity to turn to with the necessary request. Also, in each temple there were priests who specialized in fortune telling: augurs - predictors of the future by the flight of birds or in relation to their food; Haruspices - who predicted the future from the entrails of sacrificial animals and from lightning strikes.

The Romans expected help from the gods in specific matters and therefore scrupulously performed established rituals and made the necessary sacrifices. In relation to the gods, the principle “I give so that you give” operated.

During the imperial period, the cult of the geniuses of emperors gradually established itself - first posthumously, and then during their lifetime. The first to be deified (posthumously) was Julius Caesar. During his lifetime, Caligula declared himself a god.

In the 1st century AD Christianity was born in one of the provinces of the Roman Empire, which played a vital role in the history of world culture.

CHRISTIANITY IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE

In the 1st century BC. in Palestine - on the outskirts of the Roman Empire - Christianity arises, and already in the time of Nero (second half of the 1st century AD) there was a Christian community in Rome.

During the I - III centuries. Christianity spreads throughout the Roman Empire and beyond. The imperial authorities were suspicious of Christians, attributing to them misanthropy, because Christians of that time not only expected, but also called for the End of the World and the Last Judgment, Christians refused to make official sacrifices in front of statues of state gods (including emperors). This led to numerous persecutions of Christians, which were started by Nero. They took place with particular force under the emperors - Dominician, Trojan, Marcus Aurelius, Decius, Diocletian.

But, despite all the persecution, Christianity continued to live and spread, and by the 4th century it became a force that the emperors themselves were forced to reckon with. In 313, Emperors Constantine and Licinius issued the Edict of Milan, which proclaimed the equality of all religions, including Christianity, and in 325, Emperor Constantine declared Christianity the state religion. By decree of Theodosius the Great in 395, all pagan temples were closed, from that moment Christianity became the only official religion of the Roman Empire.

Already at the end of I - beginning. II century The Gospels (“Good News”) were written down in Greek, the Epistles and Acts of the Apostles were written, as well as the Apocalypse, i.e. books that made up the New Testament. To discuss and resolve complex theological issues, and first of all, to combat the Arian heresy, which were then hotly debated by Christians, by decree of Emperor Constantine, a cathedral was created in the city of Nicaea in 325, which became the first of seven Ecumenical Councils of the Christian Church.

ARCHITECTURE AND MONUMENTAL WALL PAINTING

ancient roman civilization culture painting

To understand the overall character of Roman architecture, the reasons for the appearance of giant parade squares, large spectacular buildings and memorial ensembles, it is necessary to understand the socio-economic life of Ancient Rome. The development of trade, successful wars and the influx of slaves favor the rise of the economy, the further enrichment of the clan nobility (patricians), the advancement of the rich from among the common people (plebeians) and the formation of a new Roman nobility - the nobiles. Wealth inequality is increasing; free community members are forced out of the lands and rush to the city, where they engage in crafts, petty trade, and become professional military men. Wars turned into one of the main means of profit for the Roman nobility. The victorious commanders were the idols of the Romans and were given high honors. To commemorate victories, multi-day celebrations were organized with solemn parades of troops, distributions of bread and money, grandiose performances, and gladiator fights. In accordance with the way of life, the architecture of Rome took shape - a complex system of public buildings, temples, squares that could accommodate tens of thousands of people.

The Etruscans were the teachers of the Romans. It was they who taught how to build buildings, but very soon the Romans surpassed them in this art. They began to make better use of materials that had already been used before, adapted new ones, and improved construction methods.

The early city was built without a plan, in a haphazard manner, with narrow and crooked streets, and primitive dwellings made of wood and mud brick. The only large public buildings were temples, for example the Temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline Hill, built in the 6th century BC, and the small Temple of Vesta in the Forum. There were vacant lots and undeveloped areas inside the city, and the houses of the nobility were surrounded by gardens. The drainage ditches were at first open, but then they were covered with wooden flooring and later with a stone vault.

Roman roads were of great strategic importance; they united different parts of the country. The Appian Way leading to Rome (VI-III centuries BC) for the movement of cohorts and messengers was the first of a network of roads that later covered the whole of Italy. Near the Aricchi valley, the road, paved with a thick layer of concrete, crushed stone, lava and tuff slabs, ran along a massive wall (197 m long, 11 m high) due to the terrain, dissected in the lower part by three through arched spans for mountain waters.

At the beginning of the 4th century BC. The fire of Rome after its capture by the Gauls destroyed most of the city's buildings. After the fire, the city was surrounded by new, so-called Servian walls. They consisted of the main outer walls and a powerful earthen rampart resting on it, which was supported by another, smaller one, from the city side. high wall.

In the 1st century BC. Multi-storey buildings and villas of the nobility appeared, built from baked brick and concrete, and even marble. The city was divided into blocks, the blocks were grouped into districts.

The Romans sought to emphasize in their buildings and architectural structures the idea of ​​strength, power and greatness that overwhelm man. This is where the love of Roman architects for the monumentality and scale of their buildings, which amaze with their size, was born.

Another feature of Roman architecture is the desire for lavish decoration of buildings, rich decorative furnishings, a lot of decorations, and the creation primarily not of temple complexes, but of buildings and structures for practical needs (bridges, aqueducts, theaters, amphitheaters, baths). Roman architects developed new design principles, in particular they widely used arches, vaults and domes, along with columns they used pillars and pilasters. Arches and vaults were borrowed from the Etruscans.

The arched structure is based on two elements: pillars and the arch resting on them. So, the horizontal ceiling is replaced by a curved arch. The rectangular massive shape of the pillars is less individualized compared to the column.

A striking example of the use of an arched structure - triumphal arches. These typically Roman memorial structures were already erected during the Republican period. Most often they were installed in honor of victories.

Triumphal Arch of Titus was erected in honor of the capture of Jerusalem by the troops of Emperor Titus (180s BC). its architectural appearance consists of a powerful monolith, cut through in the center by an arched span. Here we are faced with the typical Roman use of the order system in decorative terms: creating a purely visual impression of the constructiveness of the order system by “overlaying” it on the wall mass. The “facade” of the arch is clearly divided into a base, a middle part consisting of Corinthian semi-columns and an entablature, and an upper part in the form of a massive attic, where the urn with the ashes of the emperor was placed.

Unlike the Greek architects, who drew up a building plan without following the dry geometry of its different parts, the Romans proceeded from strict symmetry. They widely used the Greek orders - Doric, Ionic and Corinthian (the most favorite, magnificent order). The Romans used orders only as a decorative, decorative element.

The Romans developed the order system and created their own orders, different from the Greek ones.

Great place in public life The Romans were fascinated by spectacles. Theaters and amphitheaters are characteristic of ancient cities. Even during the period of the late Republic, a unique type of amphitheater developed in Rome. The latter was entirely a Roman invention. If Greek theaters were set up under open air, seats for spectators were located in a recess of the hill, then Roman theaters were independent closed multi-tiered buildings in the city center with seats on concentrically erected walls. Amphitheaters were intended for the crowd of the lower classes of the capital's population, hungry for spectacles, in front of which gladiator battles and naval battles were played out on the days of the festivities.

After the civil war of 68 - 69 AD, Vespasian, who came to power, began the construction of an amphitheater, known throughout the world as Coliseum. The completion of its construction occurred during the reign of Vespasian's son Titus (80 AD), and in honor of the opening of the Colosseum, hundred-day gladiatorial games were held.

In plan, the Colosseum was a closed oval (524 meters in circumference), dissected by transverse and circular passages. Its central part, the arena, is surrounded by stepped benches for spectators. The appearance, monumental and majestic, is determined by a ring wall designed in the form of a multi-tiered arcade: Tuscan below, Ionic above, Corinthian in the third tier, above which Corinthian pilasters were placed.

One of the most perfect examples of a temple with a dome was Pantheon in Rome (c.120), created by Apollodorus of Damascus. Here constructive and artistic tasks creating a large-span domed space. Rounded in plan (rotondo type), the temple had an 8-column portico of the Corinthian order. The building had a powerful domed volume on the outside, a single and intact space inside. The interior is dominated by a dome, at the top of which a light opening is left (a spherical vault, which is a monolithic mass without a frame, rests on a wall 6 m thick). the wall is divided into two tiers: the lower one, where deep niches alternate with massive columns of the Corinthian order, and the upper one - like an intermediate one between the support and the dome.

For the first time in architecture, the main emphasis shifted to the internal space, which, with its solemn and festive design, contrasts with the external appearance, where space of monumental volume dominates.

Grandiose domed coverings were used in thermae, which were a complex of rooms and courtyards where the Romans rested and had fun. The basis of the composition was the halls for ablution (baths). Most famous Baths of Caracalla (206 - 216).

The Romans created a type of public square called the forum. Having appeared during the Republican period, the forums of the empire acquired a ceremonial appearance, becoming also a grandiose architectural ensemble, including many buildings of various functionalities, glorifying one or another emperor.

Famous Trajan's forum (first half of the 2nd century AD) was created by Apollodorus of Damascus. It included:

.The main rectangular square with a triumphal arch at the entrance and a colonnade, behind which there were semicircles of trading shops;

.The five-nave basilica of Ultia, turned perpendicular to the central axis;

.A small perimeter courtyard with Trajan's Column, covered with a continuous ribbon of reliefs depicting the military exploits of the emperor. It was located on the central axis between two symmetrical library buildings;

.The last perimeter courtyard, rounded on the side where the Temple of Trajan stood.

The entire ensemble was united by the motif of colonnades and porticoes of various sizes, sometimes reaching huge ones.

All these grandiose constructions were required by Rome as the center of a huge empire. And indeed, built up with all these buildings, rich in monuments, the city was also in the 3rd - 4th centuries. looked impressive. In the 3rd century. A lot of construction was still going on - arches, magnificent baths, and palaces were being erected. “But, as A. Blok put it, “there was no longer a single sore spot on the body of the Roman Empire,” creative potential gradually faded away.” Thus, architecture begins to become obsolete and become more and more primitive. Perhaps this is due to the fact that, in pursuit of innovation and luxury, the Roman nobility too quickly exhausted the possibilities of borrowed construction techniques.

Developing in Rome monumental wall painting. The so-called “Pompeian” frescoes are usually divided into four groups:

.“Inlay style” - II century BC. Imitation of wall cladding with squares of multi-colored marble - “House of the Faun”.

.“Architectural-perspective” style. Between the picturesque columns, pilasters, and cornices there were large multi-figure compositions based on subjects borrowed from Greek painting. A realistic interpretation of images dominates - the painting of the “Villa of Mysteries”.

.“Candelabra” style - from the end of the 1st century BC. The most austere and elegant, with a variety of decorative motifs (garlands, candelabra, ornaments) that framed small plot images - “The House of Punished Cupid”.

.“Lush” style - from the middle of the 1st century AD. It combines the characteristic features of the second style (perspective architectural structures) and the third (wealth of ornamental decorations) - paintings in Nero's palace - the Golden House, the house of the Vettii.

SCULPTURE

According to legend, the first sculptures in Rome appeared under Tarquinius Proud, who decorated the roof of the Temple of Jupiter on the Capitol, which he built according to Etruscan custom, with clay statues. The first bronze sculpture was a statue of the fertility goddess Ceres, cast at the beginning of the 5th century. BC. From the 4th century BC. they begin to erect statues of Roman magistrates and even private individuals. Bronze statues were cast in the early era by Etruscan craftsmen, and starting from the 2nd century. BC. - Greek sculptors. The mass production of statues did not contribute to the creation of truly artistic works, and the Romans did not strive for this. For them, what was important in the statue was its portrait resemblance to the original. The statue was supposed to glorify this person and so it was important that the image not be confused with someone else.

On the development of Roman individual portrait influenced by the custom of removing wax masks from the deceased, which were kept in the main room of a Roman house. The masters apparently used them during sculptural work. The emergence of the Roman realistic portrait was influenced by the Etruscan tradition, which was guided by Etruscan masters working for Roman clients. In this art Rome reached the greatest heights.

Despite the complexity of the development of a sculptural portrait, the main milestones of this process can be identified:

.The period of hard realism - 1st century. BC. - “Portrait of an Old Patrician”, portraits of Caesar (the origin of a psychological tendency)

.Classical period (idealization of the image) - late. 1st century BC - beginning I century - portrait statues of Augustus.

.The period of complicated realism (psychologization and pomposity) - the second half. Iv. - portraits of Vitelius, Nero, Flavians.

.Reminiscence of the periods of realism and classics - II century. - portrait of Plotina, wife of Emperor Trajan, portraits of private individuals, portrait of Antinous

.The period of acute psychologism - III century. - portraits of Caracalla, Philip the Arabian.

.Late period - IV century.

In this area of ​​art, the Romans, using Etruscan traditions, introduced new artistic ideas and created excellent masterpieces, such as the “Capitolian She-Wolf”, “Brutus”, “Orator”, busts of Cicero, Caesar and others.

From the end of the 3rd century BC. Greek sculpture begins to influence Roman sculpture. When robbing Greek cities, the Romans captured a large number of sculptures. Despite the abundance of originals exported from Greece, there is a great demand for copies of the most famous statues. Greek sculptors copy the originals of famous masters. The abundant influx of Greek masterpieces and mass copying slowed down the flourishing of Roman sculpture.

LITERATURE

Roman literature emerges as imitative literature. The first steps of Roman fiction are associated with the spread of Greek education in Rome. Early Roman writers imitated classical examples of Greek literature, although they used Roman plots and some Roman forms.

During the development of civil society, literature became one of the leading means of dialogue with the authorities.

At the end of the 3rd century. BC. In Rome, the Latin literary language was formed and, on its basis, epic poetry. A whole galaxy of talented poets and playwrights appeared, who usually took Greek tragedies and comedies as models. One of the first Roman tragedians was a freedman Livy Andronicus , Greek by origin, translated Homer’s “Odyssey” into Latin (3rd century BC). His works played an important role in the development of Roman literature. They introduced the Romans to the wonderful Greek literature, mythology, epic and theater. Livy Andronicus laid the foundation for Roman fiction.

Younger contemporaries of Livy Andronicus were Roman poets Gnaeus Naevius (c. 274 - 204 BC) and Ennius (239 -169 BC). Naevius wrote tragedies and comedies, borrowing plots from Greek authors, but the influence of Roman life in his works is felt much stronger than in Andronicus. Naevius composed poems about the first Punic War (264 - 241 BC) with summary the previous history of Rome. Ennius was the first to describe the entire history of Rome in verse, arranging events by year. Ennius's main work was the Chronicle (Annales), but in addition, like his predecessors, he wrote tragedies and comedies. Ennius was the first to introduce the hexameter into Latin literature - a more euphonious poetic meter among the Greeks. Livius Andronicus and Gnaeus Naevius wrote their works in archaic Saturnian verse.

The largest Roman writer of the late 3rd - early 2nd centuries. BC. was Titus Maccius Plautus (254 - 184 BC), actor by profession. He composed 130 comedies, of which only 20 have reached us. He worked only in the comedy genre. The plots of the comedies were very diverse - scenes from family life, from the life of mercenary warriors, urban bohemia. One of the indispensable heroes of Plautus's comedies were slaves - cunning, resourceful, dexterous and greedy. In terms of plot and character, Plautus's comedies are imitative. His heroes wear greek names, his comedies are set in Greek cities. Plautus' comedies are usually published alphabetically. The first is called "Amphitryon". The comedy “The Boastful Warrior” was more popular. The comedy was probably directed against the mercenary troops and reminded the audience of the victory over Hannibal. Despite the fact that the action of Plautus's comedies takes place in Greek cities, and their heroes bear Greek names, they contain many lively responses to Roman reality. His comedies reflect to a certain extent the interests and views of the broad masses of the urban plebs.

Roman comedy and tragedy developed largely under the influence of Greek models and were considered non-primordially Roman genres. Originally a Roman literary genre, the ball genre is the so-called saturation. This is a mixture of different poems - long and short, written in Saturn and other meters. How literary genre satura received deep development in creativity Gaia Lucilius (180 - 102 BC). He wrote 30 books of saturs, where he exposed the vices of his contemporary society: greed, bribery, moral corruption, perjury, greed. The subjects for Lucilius’ saturs were given by real life. These stories marked the beginning of the realistic trend in Roman literature.

Roman poetry of the 1st century. BC. rose to a new, higher level. Many poets lived at this time, but among them the most outstanding were Titus Lucretius Carus (95 - 51 BC) and Guy Valery Catullus (87 - 54 BC). Lucretius owns a wonderful poem “On the Nature of Things” in six books. This philosophical poem expounds the teachings of the Hellenistic philosopher Epicurus about the nature of the gods, the origin of the earth, sky, sea, and the development of humanity and human culture from the primitive state to the time of Lucretius. In the poem, the Latin language reached a new peak; The language of farmers and warriors, short, abrupt and poor, thanks to the art of Lucretius turned out to be capacious, rich, full of shades, suitable for conveying the subtlest human feelings and deep philosophical categories.

Catullus is the greatest poet of the end of the Republic, a master of lyric poetry. He wrote short poems where he described human feelings: love and jealousy, friendship, love of nature, etc. A number of poems are directed against the dictatorial intentions of Caesar and his greedy minions. The poetic work of Catullus was influenced by Alexandrian poetry with its special attention to mythology, sophistication of language, personal experiences of the author. The poems of Catullus occupy a prominent place in world lyric poetry. His poetry was highly appreciated by A.S. Pushkin.

Drama and poetry were the main, but not the only types of Latin literature. Prose developed in parallel. Until the 2nd century BC works in prose were a rare occurrence and were brief records of historical events and legal norms. Early Roman prose, like poetry, was imitative.

The first prose work in Latin was the work Mark Portia Cato the Elder (II century BC) “On agriculture.” Cato published about 150 of his speeches, wrote Roman history, an essay on medicine, and oratory.

The most outstanding Roman writers, masters of the prosaic word, lived and worked in the 1st century. BC. Marcus Terence Varro (116 - 27 BC) - a unique writer, wrote about 74 works in 620 books. Varro's main work is “Antiquities of Divine and Human Affairs” in 41 books. Essays - “On the Latin language”, “On Latin speech”, “On grammar”, “On the comedies of Plautus”. He also wrote a treatise “On Agriculture,” where agricultural issues are presented in an elegant literary form. "The Menippean Saturas" in 150 books is a cheerful and witty poetic work. Varro's merits in the development of Roman literature were so great that he, the only Roman writer, had a monument erected to him during his lifetime.

Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 - 43 BC) - wrote in different prose genres: philosophical works (“On the limits of good and evil”, “Tusculan conversations”, “On the nature of the gods”, etc.), legal works (“On the state”, “On duties”), speeches (“against Verres”, “against Catiline”, “Philippics against Antony”), on the theory of oratory (“On the Orator”, “Brutus”), numerous letters.

A major Roman writer was Julius Caesar (100 - 44 BC), author of “Notes on the Gallic War” and “Notes on the Civil War.” Acting as a writer, Caesar pursued political goals: to justify his aggressive and often treacherous actions in Gaul, to place responsibility for the outbreak of the civil war on his opponents.

In the "Golden Age of Augustus" (27 BC - 14 AD), Roman literature reached its highest flowering: masterpieces of world literature were created, enriching its treasury. This flourishing is associated with the work of such poets as Virgil, Horace and Ovid.

Publius Virgil Maro (70-19 BC), he owns three main works that glorified his name - “Bucolics” (42 - 39 BC), a poem about agriculture “Georgics” (37 -30 BC) . BC) and the historical and mythological poem “Aeneid” (29 - 19 BC).

Quintus Horace Flaccus (65-8 BC), contributed to the formation of imperial ethics, the morality of the loyal subjects of the new regime, more than any other poet. He was one of Augustus' favorite poets. Wrote several famous works: a small collection of poems of a satirical nature, epics and satires, four books of “Odes”, or “Songs”, of a lyrical nature, two books of “Epistle”, or “Letters”. Commissioned by Augustus, Horace wrote a majestic hymn to the Roman state, “Song of the Century.” Horace owns a poetic manifesto of the poet's prophetic mission - the famous “Monument”. Subsequently, based on the “Monument” of Horace, similar “monuments” were created in Russian poetry by the great Russian poets Derzhavin and Pushkin.

Publius Ovid Naso (43 BC - 18 AD), the main theme of creativity was love, as one of the most important manifestations of human relationships. Two collections of poetry were written - “Elegies”, or “Songs of Love”, and “Heroids” (letters from heroines known from mythology to their lovers). The infamous treatise, “The Art of Love,” was the main reason for the poet’s exile. In the second period of his work, Ovid wrote two large historical and mythological poems, “Metamorphoses” and “Fasti”. The works “Letters from Pontus” and “Tristia”, “Mournful Elegies” date back to the time of exile.

Among the works of prose literature, a grandiose historical work occupies a worthy place Tita Livia (59 BC - 17 AD) "From the Founding of Rome" in 142 books.

It is impossible to imagine Roman literature without Plutarch (c. 46 - c. 126) he owned 227 works, of which over 150 have survived. Literary heritage Plutarch can be divided into two categories: a series of treatises on moral topics, including religion, philosophy, politics, literature and music, and biography.

CONCLUSION

Shocked by the powerful blows of the barbarians, the Roman Empire was heading towards its destruction. Ancient art was completing its journey. After the death of Constantine (337), the crisis of the ancient order sharply worsened in Rome. Barbarian attacks on the borders of the empire intensified, and the Romans lost almost all of their provinces. In 395, the Roman Empire was finally divided into Western and Eastern. The capital of the western half remained the city of Rome, and the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire (the future Byzantium) became the city of Constantinople, founded by Constantine on the site of the former Greek colony of Byzantium.

In 410 and 455, Rome suffered a terrible defeat - first from the Goths, and then from the Vandals. In 476, the commander of the German mercenaries stationed in Italy, Odoacer, deposed the young emperor Romulus Augustulus. This event is considered to be the fall of the Western Roman Empire.

The Eastern Roman Empire did not perish under the attacks of the barbarians and existed for almost a thousand more years.

With the end of the Western Roman Empire, ancient culture also perished, which had a great influence on subsequent development European peoples, became their common property, the basis of the entire culture of the new Europe. The most early images The originality of this culture manifested itself at the level of the most ancient forms of folk art, in particular mythology, the plots of which have served as rich material for painters, sculptors, composers, and poets for many centuries.

Ancient Rome gave Europe a developed jurisprudence, from which the modern legal system grew, and also left a rich cultural heritage that has become part of the life and culture of modern humanity. The majestic remains of Roman cities, buildings, theaters, amphitheatres, circuses, roads, aqueducts and bridges, baths and basilicas, triumphal arches and columns, temples and porticos, port facilities and military camps, multi-storey buildings and luxurious villas amaze modern people not only with their splendor , good technology, quality construction, rational architecture, but also aesthetic value. In all this there is a real connection between Roman antiquity and modern reality, visible proof that Roman civilization formed the basis European culture, and through it the entire modern civilization as a whole.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1.Grinenko G.V. Reader on the history of world culture. Textbook - 3rd ed., revised. and additional - M.: Higher education, 2005. - 940 p.

2.History of Ancient Rome: Textbook. for universities for special purposes “History” / V.I. Kuzishchin, I.L. Mayak, I.A. Gvozdeva and others; Ed. IN AND. Kuzishchina. - 4th ed., revised. and additional - M.: Higher. school, 2001. - 383 p.

.Pivoev V.M. Culturology. Introduction to the history and philosophy of culture: Textbook / V.M. Pivoev. - Ed. 2nd, revised and additional - M.: Gaudeamus; Academic Prospect, 2008. - 564 p.

.Sadokhin A.P. World artistic culture: a textbook for university students / A.P. Sadokhin. - 2nd ed., revised. and additional - M.: UNITY - DANA, 2008. - 495 s.

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Culture of Ancient Rome

The culture of Ancient Rome is the last stage in the development of ancient culture. The history of Rome spans more than 20 centuries. The very first people to settle in Rome on the Apennine Peninsula were the Ligurians. However, their origin is still unknown. In 3-2 thousand BC. Italic tribes who migrated here from the north begin to settle on the peninsula. First, these people introduced the culture of bronze to the masses, and the second wave, which occurred in the 1st millennium BC. - iron culture. Then the Etruscans, who supposedly came to these lands from Asia Minor, began to rule on the Apennine Peninsula. Scientists suggest that they were involved in the creation of the first civilization in Italy. And over the subsequent time, it was they who were assigned the leading role.

According to ancient beliefs, graceful and majestic Rome was founded by Remus and Romulus back in 753 BC. In addition, it was he who was considered the second maritime civilization in the world. Its size and position extended over several thousand kilometers, and already in the 4th century. Rome began to dominate Italy.

In the middle of the 1st century. Julius Caesar was proclaimed the sole ruler of Ancient Rome. But after his death, his adopted son Octavian Augustus took the throne.

The main stage in the development of Ancient Rome was the absorption of the Greeks, while the Romans became their guides. Gradually, the Greeks began to lose their former independence, and the Romans adopted their philosophy and mythology and won a “cultural” victory. It was Greek philosophy that was fundamental in the education of Roman society. It is known that almost all mentors were Greeks. At the same time, teachers taught all sciences only in Greek. The once proud Rome, cruel and unshakable, which fought hard for world domination, bowed its head to the culture of Greece. Artistic traditions The Roman state was quite meager, while the nascent mythology was broken at the root. Rome assimilated and adopted all the Greek deities, and at the same time gave them different names. From now on, Zeus became Jupiter, and Aphrodite Venus. Rome devoted all its efforts to creating its own independent and strong literature.

The culture of Ancient Rome is a prototype of world culture. The state can be called the first civilization in the whole world that devoted all its efforts to creating a single cultural field and captured territory. The culture of Rome did not have a coherent culture that could compete with others. The state was subordinate to the culture of other peoples, which gave it special specificity. 2nd century BC. became in a sense decisive for Rome - it adopted the world religion - Christianity.

Roman literature is known to many for its elegant prose, in which utilitarianism was visible. The culture of Ancient Rome is, first of all, a reasonable worldview and organization of life in general. Ancient Rome is the first state in which a special system of government was organized.

The Romans were convinced that the life of man and all living things on earth is subject to the power of the gods and is under their protection. In other words, a person depends on a higher power.

The afterlife played a special role in the life of the Romans. They believed that in heaven the souls of the dead would definitely have to repent for their sins. In addition, they firmly believed that the afterlife and earthly world were full of demons.

The Romans actively practiced fortune telling using the internal organs of animals and were able to predict the weather based on the flight of birds alone. By the way, the enterprising Romans even decided to adopt fortune telling from other peoples.

As for religion, it is more animistic and believed in the existence of various spirits. However, the development of the people did not stand still, and soon there was a transition to anthropomorphism. To the Romans, the gods were represented in human form, thereby influencing the emergence of the Roman pantheon.

Along with other ancient peoples, the Romans presented sacrifices to the gods and even built temples in their honor. Cult “responsibilities” were distributed among the priests: someone organized the burial and “managed” the rituals, while others organized the calendars.

Poetic and literary creativity was visible in such cult works for the state as Plautus and Terence. On the basis of these works, cult works of such playwrights as Molte and Shakespeare were created.

Theatrical performances began to be staged from the end of the 3rd century, and such a direction as atellan, based on the comedy of masks, prevailed in creativity. In order to spice up the sensations, the artists used decorations, as well as various masks and wigs. At the same time, the gladiator movement, based on animal baiting, began to emerge.

The culture of Ancient Rome left its mark on world civilization.

The history of Rome represents one of the most remarkable pages world history. Having begun its existence as a small civil community, Rome came to its end as the largest empire of the ancient world; but even after the death of Rome as a state, Roman culture continued to exert a huge influence on the culture of later Europe, and through the latter - on world culture generally.

However, Roman culture itself, from the very beginning of its history, was not something unified; it was a fusion of cultures different nations, and its initially inherent syncretism became a feature that determined the nature of the culture of Rome throughout its development. At the same time, Roman culture was by no means a disorderly agglomeration of borrowings and foreign influences; it was a completely original phenomenon, the originality of which rested on the solid foundation of the culture of the Roman polis. So what was truly Roman about the culture of Rome?

The Roman community arose in the middle. VIII century BC. as a result of the merger of several villages of different tribes, main role among whom the Latins and Sabines played; in addition, several centuries earlier the Achaean Greeks had visited here, and the Etruscans also became part of the ancient Roman community. However, the Greeks and Etruscans had a strong influence on the culture of early Rome for another reason: Southern Italy and Sicily were colonized by the Greeks at that time (there were so many Greek colonies here that this territory began to be called Magna Graecia), and the Etruscans owned a vast territory from the Alps in the north to Naples in the south. The origin of the Etruscans and their language still constitute a scientific mystery, despite the fact that a lot of monuments of their material culture have survived. The Etruscans, like the Greeks (over time, the Etruscan culture absorbed many elements of the Greek), in terms of socio-economic and cultural development superior to the Latins, and therefore the latter experienced their influence. Thus, the Romans adopted from the Etruscans the rules of field surveying, the layout of cities and houses, the practice of fortune telling by the entrails of animals, etc.

However, borrowing cultural forms from outside did not deprive Roman culture of its own original content; on the contrary, it was precisely this content that determined the nature and order of borrowing. The Romans were very rational and practical people, their thinking was almost devoid of imagery; Even in the names of months and the names of children, they used ordinal numbers (for example, the only daughter received her father’s family name, if there were two of them, then they were distinguished as Senior and Junior (major and minor), the rest were simply considered Third, Fourth, Fifth (Tertia , Qanta, Quinta) etc.).

The originality of the Roman mentality was expressed, first of all, in the Roman religion. Initially, Roman deities were neither anthropomorphic nor personal: they were not represented in human form, they were not given statues, or temples were built. Only with the borrowing of Etruscan and Greek deities did the Romans have temples and images of gods. The Romans deified various concepts, qualities, functions, stages of human activity, and these gods themselves had not their own, but common nouns; There were a great variety of such deities - for example, one personified the threshold, another the door leaves, the third the door hinges, etc. Communication with the gods was in highest degree formalized and ritualized, its content was determined by the formula “do ut des” - “I give so that [you] give”: making a sacrifice to God, the Roman expected a reciprocal step from him, i.e. expected to receive some benefit for himself. This practicality, pragmatism, legal normative consciousness, sober calculation, combined with strict patriarchal morals, emphasized respect for the dignity of elders and superiors, became the main attitudes of the original Roman culture.

The history of Rome is the history of a city that became a world; the case of Rome is unique. In ancient times there was no shortage of either civil communities or huge empires, but only Rome managed to organically combine the idea of ​​citizenship with the imperial idea, i.e. to some extent, achieve the merging of the polis ideals of freedom and independence of the community as a whole and of each citizen individually with the imperial ideal of peace and security for all; This is what is called the “Roman idea.” Accordingly, Roman culture became, as it were, an expression of this universal state: it represented a kind of civilizational technology, an easily digestible set of living standards, a kind of “know-how” of civilized (from civilis - civil) life. This culture could be borrowed with the same ease with which it itself accepted all kinds of borrowings; its actual content was an applied technological and organizational set of life-supporting structures that operated with equal efficiency in any place and at any time. Roman culture was built on the principle of open architecture - it was a system of standard structures into which any new blocks could be freely built, so its ability to develop was practically unlimited.

The Romans were especially strong in the utilitarian sphere, in everything that related to the material and organizational side of life. Architecture and urban planning on the one hand, politics and law on the other: these are the main areas where the Roman genius manifested itself. The Romans were the first to widely use baked bricks and concrete; Instead of the direct ceilings adopted by the Greeks, arched vaults began to be widely used. Wealthy Romans lived in spacious city houses with flower beds and fountains, the floors of which were covered with mosaics, and the walls were covered with frescoes; A very common type of housing was the villa - an estate that combined urban comfort with the delights rural life. The poor rented apartments in multi-storey (4-6 floors) apartment buildings. The most impressive were public buildings: the Roman Forum - a square, more precisely, a whole system of squares with libraries, porticos, statues, triumphal columns and arches, etc., theaters (also the wooden theater of Marcus Aemilius Scaurus accommodated 80 thousand people; built later three centuries Colosseum - 56 thousand people, its diameter was 188 m, height - 48.5 m), circuses - Big Circus in Rome had a length of 600 and a width of 150 m, it could accommodate 60 thousand spectators. In Rome there were about a thousand public baths - terms; The baths of Emperor Caracalla could accommodate 1800, and the baths of Diocletian - 3200 people. simultaneously. In honor of the victories of Roman weapons, triumphal arches and columns were erected: the arch of Emperor Titus had a height of 15.4 m, the arch of Constantine was 22 m high and 25.7 m wide, Trajan's column was 38 m high. Huge structures were erected by emperors: so. the mausoleum of Augustus was a cylindrical building with a diameter of 89 and a height of 44 m. Of course, temples were also built: the famous Pantheon (temple of all gods) was covered with a dome with a diameter of 43.2 m, the columns of the Temple of Olympian Zeus built in Athens by Emperor Hadrian had a height of 17.2 m .

In all provinces of the Roman Republic, and later the Empire, cities were built according to a single plan; The Roman city had a well-thought-out life support system - paved roads, sewerage, centralized water supply (water was often supplied to the city through special above-ground water pipelines - aqueducts; the length of one such aqueduct, built in Rome by Emperor Claudius, was 87 km - it supplied 700 thousand to the city. m 3 of water per day; the longest Roman aqueduct was built under Emperor Hadrian in Carthage - its length reached 132 km; in total, water was obtained through aqueducts in almost 100 cities of the empire). The cities were connected by beautiful roads, along which there were postal stations, inns, posts indicating distances, etc.; Part of the roads were bridges, viaducts, and tunnels. Roman roads had five layers of surface; total length the road network reached 80 thousand km.

Roman sculpture initially developed under strong Etruscan and Greek influence. Having taken from the Etruscans the naturalistic nature of the portrait and the developed plasticity of the human body from the Greeks, the Romans themselves added official severity and impressive dimensions: for example, one head of the statue of Emperor Constantine has a height of 2.4 m, and the colossal statue of Emperor Nero (the work of the master Zenodorus) was 2.4 m high. 39 m. Sculpture was an integral part of the urban and domestic space: at home the Roman had sculptural portraits of his ancestors, on the street he encountered images of gods, heroes and emperors (in general, among the images of Roman sculpture it is not gods, but people, that dominate - unlike the Greeks ).

Roman painting has been studied quite well: the Romans, again, painted not so much temples as houses, and depicted not only gods, but also people. Roman painting is realistic; the portrait genre occupies a large place in it (the most famous is a series of portraits from the Fayum oasis in Egypt). It must be said that, like sculpture, Roman painting is represented primarily not by masterpieces, but by high-quality mass craft products; Art among the Romans served everyday life.

Apart from the plastic arts, the Romans were the most original in the field of law. Legal science, jurisprudence arose precisely in Rome: the fact is that in Rome for many centuries there was a special position of praetor, whose duty was to interpret and develop the law. The annually elected praetors declared in their edicts how they intended to apply the existing laws. In addition, private lawyers practiced in Rome, giving their advice to everyone, who published their developments in special books. One of these lawyers, Quintus Mucius Scaevola, set out in 18 books the entire system of Roman civil law (namely, the system - for the first time in the world). During the imperial period, the codification of law was continued by Trebatius and Labeo; Salvius Julian compiled the “Eternal Edict” and “Digests” in 90 books, Guy wrote “Institutions” (a legal textbook in 4 books), Papinian, Ulpian also did a lot (one of his treatises “On the Praetorial Edict” consisted of 81 books) and Paul .

The art of oratory - rhetoric - was also very developed in Rome. Studying at the rhetorician's school crowned the entire system of Roman school education: the primary school was private, students studied there for 4–5 years, then followed by a 4-year grammar school and, finally, a 3–4-year rhetorician school. (It must be said that the literacy rate in the Roman Empire reached 50%). The rhetorician's school was state-owned, the rhetoricians were on salary; it was a kind of university - a person who received such an education could make a career in any field. Actually, oratory was especially necessary in the Senate and court; the most famous Roman orator was Marcus Tullius Cicero (about 50 of his speeches have reached us).

Philology was closely related to rhetoric, which received its great development: Of the most famous Roman philologists, we should mention Marcus Terence Varro. Varro, like many other Roman scientists, was an encyclopedist - he wrote about 600 books on various branches of knowledge. In general, the encyclopedia became a real Roman genre: Varro wrote 41 books of “Divine and Human Antiquities,” Pliny the Elder wrote “Natural History” in 37 books, etc. These were people of enormous knowledge: for example, Pliny’s list of sources includes 400 authors, Varro, in one of his works, “Images,” gives literary portraits of 700 famous Greeks and Romans - but he was not a specialist historian, but wrote works on philosophy, law, and agriculture.

However, in Rome there were enough philosophers and historians, not to mention scientists who left reference books and monographs on almost all the special sciences that appeared during this period. In philosophy the Romans did not create original schools; the most widespread teachings in Rome were Stoicism (Seneca, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius), Epicureanism (Lucretius), and Cynicism. Among the historians, we should name Titus Livy, who described 8 centuries of Roman history in 142 books of his “history of Rome from the foundation of the city” (only a fourth of this work has reached us, but even this little in modern editions takes up about 1500 pages), Cornelius Tacitus (“ history” and “Annals”), Suetonius Tranquillus (the famous book “The Lives of the Twelve Caesars”), Ammianus Marcellinus (“Acts”), etc. Representatives of the natural sciences include Diophantus of Alexandria (mathematics), Claudius Ptolemy (geography), Galen ( medicine).

Roman literature began with the Greeks writing in Latin and the Romans writing in Greek; it began with translations and transcriptions. Captive Greek Livius Andronicus in the 3rd century. BC. translated Greek tragedies and comedies (Sophocles and Euripides) into Latin, and also translated the Odyssey; at the same time, Naevius began to write his imitations of the Greeks in Latin. More original were the creator of the historical epic “Annals” Ennius and the comedians Plautus and Terence, while Gaius Lucilius and Lucius Actius created completely national literature in both form and content. The golden age of Roman literature (more precisely, poetry) was the time of the first emperors, when the author of “Georgics” and “Aeneid” Virgil, who wrote “Satires”, “Epodes”, “Odes” and “Epistles” Horace and the author of “The Science of Love” and “Metamorphoses” Ovid. Among the later Roman writers, Petronius, Lucan, Apuleius, Martial, Juvenal and others should be mentioned.

The culture of Rome and Christian culture are in a complex dialectical relationship: it is difficult to decide what is important in this relationship and what is derivative. Rome was possible without Christianity, but Christianity was impossible without Rome; Christianity could become a world religion only in a world empire. On the other hand, without Christianity, which inherited Roman culture, we would have had about the same idea about ancient culture as about Etruscan or early Minoan culture, and its significance for us would have been the same as the significance of the Indian civilizations of Mesoamerica; Without Christianity, only silent monuments of material culture would have remained from antiquity, the historical and cultural tradition would have been interrupted, and therefore we ourselves would have been different. Christianity and Rome both denied and complemented each other: at first Christianity was impossible without Rome, which persecuted Christians, and then the very existence of Rome became derived from Christianity, which just as steadily fought against Roman paganism - i.e. the backbone of the entire ancient culture.

Traditional Roman religion did not promise those who professed it eternal life, afterlife bliss, posthumous punishment of the evil and encouragement of the good: like any paganism, i.e. the animation of the forces and objects of nature, she was focused on this world and life in it - beyond the grave, both good and evil awaited the same sad vegetation in Hades. Roman paganism, like any other, did not know personal ethics, because was addressed not to an individual, but to a community; it was a ritual and ceremonial system, the action of which took place only on the surface of a person’s spiritual world - for mental life itself at this stage of development was quite superficial, or rather, fundamentally oriented towards external action, and not towards internal content. Only in an empire does it become possible for the emergence of a new person, a person-person, in our understanding, for whom the value of inner life, moral self-improvement, internal freedom mean no less than the values ​​of external success and prosperity: state universalism gives rise to civil individualism, the empire and the individual are interconnected.

The new man needed a new god, or rather, God - an omnipotent and all-encompassing, but at the same time infinitely close to man, good being who would “manage” not a separate people, locality, sphere of activity, etc., but infinity and eternity , and could communicate them to the human soul. The search for such a god begins already in the early Empire: the cult of the old Roman gods gradually declines (or rather, the cult remains, but the gods themselves are now understood only as images and symbols), the new cult of emperors also cannot satisfy the requirements of religious feeling, and in Rome Eastern religions are spreading. The worship of Cybele, Isis, Atargata, Mithra, Baal, etc. gave remission of sins and victory over death, promised eternal life; It is in this circle of religious ideas and practices that Christianity begins to spread. Born in the remote province of Judea, known only for the religious fanaticism of its inhabitants, who worshiped a single unknown god, obscure to the Romans, the new religion quickly spread throughout the empire. Having emerged as one of the Jewish sects, Christianity quickly became a cosmopolitan religion for people of any language, gender, social and national affiliation - needless to say, this was only possible in the empire; already three decades after the death of their founder, followers of Christ appeared in Rome itself. During the 1st – 2nd centuries. the Roman state either persecuted Christians or treated them with tolerance: for the traditional Roman consciousness, the idea of ​​​​monotheism was incomprehensible, and their joyful expectation of the end of the world was unpleasant; in addition, Christians refused to take part in the cult of the emperor, which was perceived as a sign of political disloyalty. And yet, the real persecution of Christians began only in the second half of the 3rd century, when the Roman state declared war on the Christian church, this “parallel state” that integrated an ever-increasing volume of social relations. A serious struggle was waged for about half a century, but it was not successful: Christians were already everywhere - in government, in the army, in all political institutions in general. The pagan empire was degenerating into a Christian one - seeing the futility of the fight against Christianity, the Roman state recognized it as equal in rights with other religions of the empire (313). After this, it was no longer possible to stop the spread of Christianity, and in 392 pagan cults were officially banned, and the persecution of pagans began. The development of Christian culture itself begins - religious literature, architecture, painting, etc. Christianity crosses the borders of the empire and spreads among the barbarians, who soon after crush the Western Roman statehood; The Christian Church partially fills the power vacuum, naturally becoming politicized in the process. The history of Rome recedes into the past, and the heritage of Roman culture becomes the property of Christianity: this was the end of the half-millennium period of relationship between these so significant phenomena of world history and culture.

The importance of Roman culture for Europe, through it, for the whole world, is difficult to overestimate. Political system, technology, language, literature, art - in almost all spheres of life we ​​are the heirs of the ancient Romans. The Roman tradition was preserved both directly and continuously, and indirectly; The “Roman idea” turned out to be truly eternal. The successors to Roman statehood, the Eastern Roman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, lasted until 1453 and 1806 respectively; but also later political formations in Europe and partly beyond its borders were built on the basis of an appeal to the heritage of ancient Rome. In the Middle Ages, both in the West and in Byzantium, people still considered and called themselves Romans, and when the difference from antiquity was finally realized by them, it was only in order to announce the need for a new revival of it (the Renaissance). The way of perceiving the world, relationships between people, the foundations of aesthetics, the structure of language and, accordingly, thinking - all of this among the peoples and societies of Europe that have emerged over the last one and a half millennia is united in its fundamental principles: what distinguishes Europeans from representatives of other regions and cultures (for example, the inhabitants of India or China), is the result of the common heritage of Rome for all of us, the heritage of ancient civilization as a whole. The realities of Rome, separated from us by two millennia, are clearer and closer to us than the modern culture of peoples who had no historical connection with ancient civilization; As long as Europe exists – it doesn’t matter so much whether it’s Western or Eastern, the Eternal City continues its “life after death.”

The culture of Ancient Rome is associated with the completion of the history of ancient society. It continued the Hellenistic tradition and at the same time acted as an independent phenomenon, determined by the course of historical events, the uniqueness of living conditions, religion and the character traits of the Romans. The culture of Ancient Rome was characterized by increased individualism. The individual increasingly begins to oppose himself to the state, traditional ancient ideals are rethought and criticized, society becomes more open to external influences.

For the Roman worldview early period were characterized by a feeling of oneself as a free citizen, consciously choosing and committing his actions; a sense of collectivism, belonging to a civil community, the priority of state interests over personal ones; conservatism, following the morals and customs of ancestors (ascetic ideals of frugality, hard work, patriotism); desire for communal isolation and isolation from outside world. The Romans differed from the Greeks in being more sober and practical.

Initially, the territory of the Apennine Peninsula was inhabited by various tribes, among which the most developed were the Veneti in the north, the Etruscans in the center, and the Greeks in the south. It was the Etruscans and Greeks who had a decisive influence on the formation of ancient Roman culture.

The Etruscans inhabited these lands from the 1st millennium BC. e. and created an advanced civilization that preceded the Roman one. Etruria was a strong maritime power. Skilled metallurgists, shipbuilders, traders, builders and pirates, the Etruscans sailed throughout the Mediterranean Sea, assimilating the cultural traditions of many peoples inhabiting its coast, creating a high and unique culture. It was from the Etruscans that the Romans subsequently borrowed the experience of urban planning, craft techniques, technology for making iron, glass, concrete, the secret sciences of the priests and some customs, for example, celebrating a victory with a triumph. The Etruscans also created the emblem of Rome - a she-wolf who, according to legend, suckled the twins Romulus and Remus - descendants of the Trojan hero Aeneas. It was these brothers who, according to legend, founded the city of Rome in 753 BC. e. on the day of the celebration of the shepherd goddess Paleia (April 21).

The Latins who lived in the west gradually reached a high level of development, conquered neighboring territories and peoples, and later formed one of the largest empires of antiquity, which included European countries, the northern coast of Africa and part of Asia.

In the chronology of the cultural history of Ancient Rome, three major periods can be distinguished:

1) monarchy - 753 - 509. BC e.;
2) republic - 509 - 29. BC e.;
3) empire - 29 BC. e. - 476 AD e.

Architecture

Urban planning and architecture of the Republican era go through three stages in their development. In the first (5th century BC) the city was built up chaotically; primitive dwellings made of adobe and wood predominate; monumental construction is limited to the construction of temples (the rectangular temple of Jupiter Capitolinus, the round temple of Vesta).

At the second stage (IV-III centuries BC) the city begins to be improved (paved streets, sewerage, water pipes). The main type of structures are engineering military and civil buildings - defensive walls (the wall of Servius of the 4th century BC), roads (Appian Way 312 BC), grandiose aqueducts supplying water for tens of kilometers (Aqueduct of Appius Claudius 311 BC), sewage canals (cloaca Maximus). There is a strong Etruscan influence (temple type, arch, vault).

At the third stage (II-I centuries BC), elements of urban planning appear: division into blocks, design of the city center (Forum), arrangement of park areas on the outskirts. Used new construction material- waterproof and durable Roman concrete (made of crushed stone, volcanic sand and lime mortar), which makes it possible to construct vaulted ceilings in large rooms. Roman architects creatively reworked Greek architectural forms. They create a new type of order - a composite one, combining the features of the Ionian, Dorian and especially Corinthian styles, as well as an order arcade - a set of arches resting on columns.

Based on the synthesis of Etruscan samples and the Greek peripter, a special type of temple emerged - a pseudo-peripter with a high base (podium), a facade in the form of a deep portico and blank walls dissected by semi-columns. Under Greek influence, the construction of theaters begins; but if the Greek theater was carved into the rock and was part of the surrounding landscape, then the Roman amphitheater is an independent structure with a closed internal space, in which the rows of spectators are located in an ellipse around the stage or arena (Great Theater in Pompeii, theater on the Campus Martius in Rome).

To build residential buildings, the Romans borrowed the Greek peristyle design (a courtyard surrounded by a colonnade, to which living quarters are adjacent), but, unlike the Greeks, they tried to arrange the rooms in strict symmetry (House of Pansa and House of Faun in Pompeii); country estates (villas), freely organized and closely connected with the landscape, became the favorite vacation spot of the Roman nobility; their integral parts are a garden, fountains, gazebos, grottoes, statues and a large pond. Actually Roman (Italian) architectural tradition represented by basilicas (rectangular buildings with several naves) intended for trade and the administration of justice (Portian Basilica, Emilian Basilica); monumental tombs (tomb of Caecilia Metella); triumphal arches on roads and squares with one or three spans; thermal baths (complexes of bathhouses and sports facilities).

Sculpture

Roman monumental sculpture did not develop as much as Greek; she was not focused on the image of a physically and spiritually perfect person; its hero was a Roman statesman, dressed in a toga. Plastic art was dominated by the sculptural portrait, historically associated with the custom of removing a wax mask from the deceased and storing it along with figurines of household gods. Unlike the Greeks, Roman masters sought to convey individual, rather than ideally generalized, features of their models; their works were characterized by great prosaicism. Gradually, from a detailed fixation of the external appearance, they moved on to revealing the inner character of the characters (“Brutus”, “Cicero”, “Pompey”).

Painting

Two styles dominated in painting (wall painting): the first Pompeian (inlay), when the artist imitated the laying of a wall of colored marble (House of Faun in Pompeii), and the second Pompeian (architectural), when he used his design (columns, cornices, porticos, arbors) created the illusion of expanding the space of the room (Villa of Mysteries in Pompeii); An important role here was played by the depiction of the landscape, devoid of the isolation and limitations that were characteristic of ancient Greek landscapes.

Literature

History of Roman literature V-I centuries. BC. breaks down into two periods. Until the middle of the 3rd century. BC. oral folk literature undoubtedly dominated: incantations and incantations, work and everyday (wedding, drinking, funeral) songs, religious hymns (the hymn of the Arval brothers), fescennins (songs of a comic and parody nature), saturas (impromptu skits, a prototype of folk drama), atellans (satirical farces with permanent masked characters: a fool-glutton, a fool-braggart, an old miser, a pseudo-scientist-charlatan).

The birth of written literature is associated with the emergence of the Latin alphabet, which originated either from Etruscan or Western Greek; it numbered twenty-one characters. The earliest monuments of Latin writing were the annals of the pontiffs (weather records of major events), prophecies of a public and private nature, international treaties, funeral orations or inscriptions in the houses of the deceased, genealogical lists, and legal documents. The first text that has come down to us is the laws of the Twelve Tables 451-450 BC; the first writer known to us is Appius Claudius (late 4th - early 3rd centuries BC), author of several legal treatises and a collection of poetic maxims.

From the middle of the 3rd century. BC. Roman literature began to be strongly influenced by Greek. He played a major role in cultural Hellenization in the first half of the 2nd century. BC. circle of Scipios; however, she also faced strong opposition from the defenders of antiquity (the group of Cato the Elder); Greek philosophy caused particular hostility.

Drama and theater

The birth of the main genres of Roman literature was associated with imitation of Greek and Hellenistic models. The works of the first Roman playwright, Livius Andronicus (c. 280-207 BC), were adaptations of Greek tragedies of the 5th century. BC, like most of the works of his followers Gnaeus Naevius (c. 270-201 BC) and Quintus Ennius (239-169 BC). At the same time, Gnaeus Naevius is credited with creating the Roman national drama - pretexts (Romulus, Clastidia); his work was continued by Ennius (The Rape of the Sabine Women) and Actium (170 - ca. 85 BC), who completely abandoned mythological subjects (Brutus).

Andronicus and Naevius are also considered the first Roman comedians who created the genre of palleata (Latin comedy based on a Greek plot); Naevius took material from Old Attic comedies, but supplemented it with Roman realities. The heyday of palleata is associated with the work of Plautus (mid-3rd century - 184 BC) and Terence (c. 195-159 BC), who were already guided by Neo-Attic comedy, especially Menander; they actively developed everyday topics (conflicts between fathers and children, lovers and pimps, debtors and moneylenders, problems of education and attitudes towards women).

In the second half of the 2nd century. BC. the Roman national comedy (togata) was born; Afranius stood at its origins; in the first half of the 1st century. BC. Titinius and Atta worked in this genre; they depicted the life of the lower classes and ridiculed the decline of morals. At the end of the 2nd century. BC. atellana (Pomponius, Novius) also received a literary form; now they began to play it after the performance of the tragedy for the entertainment of the audience; She often parodied mythological stories; The mask of an old rich miser, thirsty for positions, acquired special significance in her. At the same time, thanks to Lucilius (180-102 BC), satura turned into a special literary genre - satirical dialogue.

Poetry

Under the influence of Homer in the second half of the 3rd century. BC. poetry develops - the first Roman epic poems appear, telling the story of the history of Rome from its foundation to the end of the 3rd century. BC, - Punic War of Naevius and Annals of Ennius. In the 1st century BC. Lucretius Carus (95-55 BC) creates a philosophical poem On the Nature of Things, in which he sets out and develops the atomistic concept of Epicurus.

At the beginning of the 1st century. BC. Roman lyric poetry arose, which was greatly influenced by the Alexandrian poetic school. Roman neoteric poets (Valerius Cato, Licinius Calvus, Valerius Catullus) sought to penetrate into the intimate experiences of a person and professed the cult of form; their favorite genres were the mythological epillium (short poem), elegy and epigram. The most outstanding neoteric poet Catullus (87 - c. 54 BC) also contributed to the development of Roman civil lyric poetry (epigrams against Caesar and Pompey); thanks to him, the Roman epigram took shape as a genre.

Prose

The first prose works in Latin belong to Cato the Elder (234-149 BC), the founder of Roman historiography (Origins) and Roman agronomic science (On Agriculture). The real flowering of Latin prose dates back to the 1st century. BC. The best examples of historical prose are the works of Julius Caesar - Notes on the Gallic War and Notes on the Civil War - and Sallust Crispus (86 - c. 35 BC) - The Conspiracy of Catiline, the Jugurthine War and History.

Scientific prose of the 1st century. BC. represented by Terence Varro (116-27 BC), author of the encyclopedia Human and Divine Antiquities, historical and philological works On the Latin language, On grammar, On the comedies of Plautus and the treatise On Agriculture, and Vitruvius (second half of the 1st century BC AD), creator of the treatise “On Architecture”.

Oratory

I century BC. is the golden age of Roman oratorical prose, which developed within two directions - Asian (florid style, abundance of aphorisms, metrical organization of periods) and Attic (compressed and simple language); Hortensius Gortalus belonged to the first, Julius Caesar, Licinius Calvus and Marcus Junius Brutus to the second. It reached its peak in the judicial and political speeches of Cicero, who originally combined Asian and Attic manners; Cicero also made a significant contribution to the development of the theory of Roman eloquence (On the Orator, Brutus, Orator).