Midterm 2 Flashcards
ANCIENT ROME AND THE AENID
Mythical founding of Rome!
Dome
Curved structure which has no angles and no corners and can enclose a massive amount of space
Concrete
Allowed for greater flexibility in design and significantly reduces construction time. Water-resistant and can harden underwater, making it vital for constructing roads, arches, aqueducts, and domes.
Arch
Architectural feature (often using a cornerstone) that compresses weight down and outwards while creating open space
Vault
Tunnels / ceilings created out of many arches
Caesar Augustus
Octavius Thurinus, later known as Julius Caesar Augustus (63 BCE – 14 CE), was the FIRST EMPEROR OF ROME and the grand-nephew and adopted son of Julius Caesar.
Master of messaging – using oration, art, and literature to boost his position and popularity as emperor
Initiated the Pax Romana (200 years of peace) after many years of war
Verism
Extreme realism (over-exaggerated wrinkles and scars in sculpture) meant to glorify the experience and wisdom of Romans
Romulus
A legendary figure in Roman mythology, credited as the founder and first king of Rome. According to the traditional accounts, he and his twin brother, Remus, were the sons of Rhea Silvia and Mars, the god of war. He symbolizes the strength, resilience, and martial prowess that Rome valued.
Remus
A crucial figure in the city’s mythic origins. His story emphasizes themes of brotherhood, rivalry, and tragedy. The tale of Remus’s death at the hands of his brother Romulus serves as a poignant reminder of the costs of ambition and the complexities of leadership and power.
Capitoline She-Wolf
Female wolf that took care of and fed Romulus and Remus. Now a huge Roman symbol!
Bust
Shoulder-Up Portrayal of a Person (ex: Capitoline Brutus)
Aeneas
REPRESENTS ROME
(reason/duty/control = civilized)
Destiny: his fate is to bring his people to Italy and found a city (his descendants would eventually found Rome). Embodiment of Pietas: chooses to leave his city and Dido out of duty
Juno is the goddess that impedes his journey. She does not like Aeneas because she hates the Trojans, and her favorite City is Carthage, which is where Dido is from.
Dido
REPRESENTS CARTHAGE
(emotion/irrationality = barbaric)
Great leader and very similar story to Aeneas initially. In the beginning, she is very similar to Aeneas (pietas)
- Builds up the flourishing city of Carthage after her husband dies when she was queen.
- Has many marriage proposals, but chooses to take care of her people instead
Maintains pietas until she is hit with cupid’s arrow and falls in love with Aeneas
Leaves her duties with Carthage to pursue this relationship (turns from “Pietas” to “Furur”)
Virgil uses Dido as a contrast to Aeneas.
Virgil
Author of The Aeneid. Virgil and Augustus wanted to give Rome a national, foundational story like the Iliad and Odyssey for the Greeks. On his deathbed, Virgil asked that the Aeneid be burned, and scholars are unsure why.
- Debate over whether Virgil was trying to justify the actions of Caesar Augustus and the Roman empire or to question them
Epicureanism
The aim of life is to seek pleasure (finding balance between two extremes that cause pain).
* Pleasure = Absence of pain
(desires & cares lead to pain)
* Highest pleasures are of the mind
* Generally avoided community involvement & political efforts
(because they cause pain lol)
* BELIEF IN ATOMS & MOLECULES (both body and soul) -> NO AFTERLIFE & NO RESURRECTION
Contrapposto
(Italian: “opposite”), in the visual arts, a sculptural scheme, originated by the ancient Greeks, in which the standing human figure is poised such that the weight rests on one leg (called the engaged leg), freeing the other leg, which is bent at the knee.
Stoicism
Most popular philosophy in Rome! (very practical way of living)
* Originated in Greece
* Mind over circumstances; we control our own happiness
* Logic and reason are the greatest good
* Originally very community-based, but now it is reemerging in an individualistic light
* Universe is ordered by divine reason (Logos), and a man cannot change the course of events
* No thing is “good” or “bad”. The only true good is the reasoning/judgement/motives behind our actions
* We should accept the things we cannot control and control our emotional reactions as we seek virtue
* Not concerned about the afterlife
Aqueduct
A watercourse constructed to carry water from a source to a distribution point far away
Triumphal Arch
A monumental structure pierced by at least one arched passageway and erected to honor an important person or to commemorate a significant event–OFTEN A WAR VICTORY.
Pietas
Duty to gods, state and family
-> “peity”
Relief Sculpture
Sculptures that are still attached. A type of art where figures are carved into a flat surface, creating a three-dimensional form that projects from the background
Laocoon
A Trojan priest of Apollo or Poseidon, tried to warn the Trojans about the wooden horse by saying “Beware of Greeks bearing gifts” and proving that the horse was hollow by throwing a spear at it. The gods favored the Greeks, so they sent two giant serpents to kill him and his two sons.
Augustus of Prime Porfa
Statue that Caesar Augustus looking like a powerful military leader and orator (includes cupid on a dolphin (Venus) -> CLAIMING DESCENT FROM THE GODS)
The Colosseum
Amphitheater built FOR THE PEOPLE by Emperor Vespasian on Nero’s grounds
Paid for with spoils of Jewish War
“Colosseum” actually referred to its proximity to a giant statue of Nero next to the amphitheater (this statue was later turned into Apollo)
Hypogeum: place under the stage to store animals and props. includes lots of trap doors to bring stuff up