Hi folks! This week we have two intense readings from Roman legend. The thing to remember here is that the Romans told these stories about themselves, centuries after these events were thought to have happened. They reflect part of how the Romans saw their origins, and therefore who they were at heart.

From your perspective, what might they tell us about how the Romans saw the core roles of women in their culture?

The passage that jumped out to me was the “The Capture of the Sabine” by Livy. The reason as to why “The Capture of the Sabine” interests me is because it portrays the steps Roman men are willing to take in order to benefit them. The detail that particularly jumped out to me as I read it was when it stated, “When the hour for the games had come, and their eyes and minds were alike riveted on the spectacle before them, the preconcerted signal was given and the Roman youth dashed in all directions to carry off the maidens who were present”, it seemed as if they had orchestrated this plan prior and actually thought that it would be morally correct to do those things. They treated the women as if they were resources or only made to reproduce since the main issue that had led to the capture was the need for the next generation. I think the author was trying to communicate the overstepping of boundaries within the capture of the Sabine women, how distressed the were and how this affected the city. The document was telling us that the place in which this occurred the men were desperate for a growth in the community and since they lacked women, they had to do other things in order to make ends meet, even if that means disregarding how the people of Sabine might feel or react. I would like to know more on why didn’t roman men use any other ideas, instead of resorting to capturing these Sabine women?

Livy’s The Capture of the Sabine Women portrays the connections between the position of women in Roman society, their role in the family, and the role of family in Roman citizenship and the preservation of the state. The text portrays women as being central to the founding of Rome, while at the same time excluding them from any real political power.

One detail that stood out to me is the fact that Romulus promised that the women would live in “honorable wedlock” and have property and civic rights. They would also become “mothers of freemen.” This passage shows that in Roman society, women’s worth and value in the society were tied to their marriage and motherhood by the ideals of Rome’ and of course family formation.

Livy is not pro-war and seems more of the pro-peace and the united side. He seems to suggest that the formation of families and the social stability that Rome would eventually have were the reasons for the early problems that Rome faced and the things that would eventually make Rome a more unified society and bring about early problems.

Elite Roman women, from what the document shows, were expected to perform their responsibilities in the family and the domestic sphere, but were also able to exercise their moral influence. This is evident in the tensions that were between the Romans and the Sabines. The women appealed to both sides in the family bond and were able to help bring peace.

Aligned with other texts concerning Roman women, the current analysis continues the line of argumentation claiming women had some influence, though likely indirect, as they operated outside the boundaries of power relations, relying primarily on kinship as a strategy of persuasion. I am curious to hear about the experiences of actual Roman women, especially via materials that are not limited to the elite male commentators, such as Livy.

After reading The Rape of Lucretia, the story stood out to me for how sharply it exposes Roman ideas about honor and female identity. The moment that stood out to me most was Lucretia's insistences that she remained innocent even after being assaulted, yet still felt compelled to take her own life to preserve her family's honor. Livy seems to be emphasizing extreme Romans placed on female chastity and the belief that a woman's moral purity reflected directly on the men around her. Through this, he communicates not only a personal tragedy but also a political turning point, since Lucretia's fate becomes the spark for overthrowing the monarchy.

The text reveals a society where women had almost no control over how their bodies or reputations were judged, and where their worth was tied to obedience, modesty, and sexual purity. It supports what we've seen in other readings, women were expected to uphold family honor while men held the real power to act, avenge, or even make political change. The fact that Lucretia's death becomes meaningful only through the actions of the men around her shows how limited women's agency truly was. At the same time, it also highlights how stories about women were used to justify major political shifts, turning female suffering into a moral lesson for male citizens.

It is precisely at the interaction of personal tragedy with public catastrophe that I have selected Livy's account of The Rape of Lucretia. Having always been fascinated by how ancient writers tie huge turning points, such as this, into intimate emotional events, what really attracted my attention was the moment after Lucretia had been violated by Sextus Tarquinius. She insists on telling her husband and her father what happened and then proceeds to kill herself before their eyes. The intensity of that moment of grief and refusal to crumble silently under shame, followed by immediate male retaliation, really demonstrates how ideas of honor and purity shaped Roman expectations for women. Livy thus seems to be using the tale to describe not only a crime but also the moral decay of the monarchy. By this image of the king's son as someone who abuses power for his own pleasure, he sets up the collapse of the Roman monarchy as a result of moral corruption at the top.

Such a document tells practically everything about the values of Romans during the time of Livy, as well as those during the time that he is writing about. The most powerful emphases are on female virtue, male honor, and how personal sin can justify rebellion. It shows how the Romans liked to theorize about political changes in terms of moral narratives—saying that basically Rome turned into a republic because the monarchy had grown so intolerably corrupt. When looking at views of this sort in comparison with any other readings from the Roman world, one consistent theme shows up: authors are often employing exemplary characters (good or bad) to teach moral lessons. Like when writers like Cicero discuss virtue and leadership, or in other examples of early Roman tales, such as heroic women like Cloelia, this also stands true. Moreover, while Lucretia is praised for her chastity, the impositions placed on women with regard to chastity becomes a point of contention as it indicates how really restricted their agency was. Overall, Livy's narrative holds up to what has been observed elsewhere—Romans constructed their identity and munition of supposed superior characteristics by narrating tales of past events.

I picked the reading “The Rape of Lucretia” because I was interested in how her husband and father defended her honor, insisting that she did nothing wrong. I was surprised to see men being supportive of women during that time period, which does not seem common. The author highlights the attitude of high status people, showing how they believed they could overpower and control everyone. For instance, Sextus Tarquinius committed a crime just because he decided to ruin Lucretia’s virtue and prove himself superior. This document is trying to teach a message through Lucretia’s tragic death. Her death was the reason the Roman people discovered the crime and the true violent nature of the prince, leading to the plan of deposing the king’s family by Brutus. I believe Lucretia’s death also warned other women to be more cautious. It also shows the difficulties women faced to survive at that time because, even though Lucretia lived a virtuous life that fit the expectations of Roman society, she still had to experience this trauma. No matter what they did, women were not respected in that society. This story relates to other readings, such as the story of the Sabine Women, which also shows how women played an important role in the improvement of Rome. I would like to know more about whether other women at that time saw Lucretia’s death as a warning sign or responded to it in some other way.

I chose The Capture of the Sabine Women because the story was shocking and I wanted to understand why Romans used it to explain their early history. One part that stood out to me was when the women ran into the middle of the fight between their fathers and husbands, begging them to stop killing each other. I think the author wanted to show that Rome’s beginnings were violent but that the Romans believed everything they did helped their city grow. This document shows that early Rome was ruled by men and that women had little power, yet they were still important in stories about peace. It connects to other readings, like The Rape of Lucretia, because both stories show women suffering but becoming the reason for big changes in Rome. I would like to learn more about how real Roman women felt about these stories and whether people back then believed these events were true or just legends

This week’s reading, I chose Livy’s Capture of the Sabine Women because the story immediately grabbed my attention. It felt dramatic but also uncomfortable, especially because Livy tries to justify the Romans’ actions. The moment that jumped out at me most was when the Sabine women rushed between their fathers and husbands “ with disheveled hair and torn clothes” to stop the fighting. That image stayed with me because these women, who were taken against their will, ended up being the ones who served both sides from destroying each other.

From my point of view, Livy is trying to show that early Rome had a powerful destiny, even if it meant doing things that were morally wrong. He makes it seem like the abduction was necessary for Rome’s survival, which tells me a lot about how ancient societies tried to justify violence by turning it into a heroic origin story.

This reading also reveals how little control women had in this time period. Their emotions only matter when they help unite the men. At the same time, the story fits what we’ve read in class–women often appear in ancient texts only when they influence politics or war. What I would like to know more about is how real Romans reacted to this story. Did they see it as something to be proud of? Or did some people question it, even back then? I think understanding that would help explain how myths were used to shape Roman identity.

I chose to respond to "The Rape of Lucretia" by Livy for this document this week because it made me think of one of those private wrongs of a woman that precipitates public wrongs across a nation. I think the detail that struck me the most is that Livy compares Lucretia to a proper Roman matron spinning her wool in the middle of the night, while the others "had fun" while their husbands were back. It indicates how the propriety of morals had a gendered distinction and thus a link to public integrity through Roman culture. Livy seems to use this rather long-winded tale to laud Lucretia's ultimately honorable decision to keep her chastity, but more so to demonstrate how male dominance through inordinate dominance - aka the Royal Family - destroys a nation. I think this document shows a world where female virtue was critical to doing the proper thing in private and public life, and how rape ended up with political implications. This relates to other secondary readings where women were often reduced to their domestic labor value and their virtuous value. However, this gives a woman's pain important - and difficult - political value, which complicates the narrative for propriety in Rome. For example, I'd like to know how much is legendary versus historical, and how Romans used Lucretia's story to justify their own morals about virtue and political governance.

I chose “The Rape of Lucretia” because the ending really shocked me, especially the moment when she decides to end her own life. The part that stood out most was when Lucretia says her heart is still pure, but she still feels she has to die to protect her honor. Even though she was innocent, she believed her reputation and her family’s honor were ruined forever.

I think the author wanted to show how extreme Roman ideas about honor were. Lucretia didn’t kill herself because of guilt, but because society expected women to be completely “pure,” even when something happened against their will. Her suicide also becomes a turning point—her death inspires Brutus and the others to overthrow the king. So Livy uses her tragedy to explain why Rome got rid of monarchy.

This tells us that in early Rome, honor meant more than life, especially for women. It also shows how personal suffering could lead to big political changes. Compared to other readings, it fits with the idea that Romans told dramatic stories to teach moral lessons and explain historical events.

I would like to learn more about how real this story is, and whether Roman women actually faced this kind of pressure in real life, or if Lucretia’s story is more symbolic.