Blog 2 - Corrupted Morals

Even though “Rome wasn’t built in a day” a lot can change in 100 years. Roman architecture stood the test of time, but other things were not as enduring. For this analysis, we will be analyzing the changes in Roman morals during the time of Polybius and Vergil compared to those morals in the time of Juvenal. More specifically, we will analyze the moral changes in loyalty, funerals, and politics between these two times.

Lacking Loyalty

The first major transition in Roman morals is the altered dedication individuals have toward the gods. Vergil exemplifies the loyalty and absolute obedience individuals showed toward the gods in the Aeneid. When telling the story of Aeneas and Dido, Vergil depicts the sacrifice Aeneas makes for the gods. Vergil describes, “although great love has shaken his soul, he obeys the gods’ will and returns to the fleet,” (Lombardo). Despite the overwhelming love that Aeneas and Dido share, Aeneas sacrifices this love because the gods had something else in store for him. This dedication to the gods drastically changes from Vergil’s time to Juvenal’s time.

Juvenal explained what dedication to the gods looked like. He depicts this concept by describing the religious dedications of a “poor man”. He says, “Though he swear by all the altars of Samothrace or of Rome, the poor man is believed to care naught for Gods and thunderbolts, the Gods themselves forgiving him” (Juvenal). Individuals transitioned from absolute loyalty toward the gods to superficial dedication that didn’t honor them. According to Juvenal, if the gods were to ask the “poor man” to sacrifice as Aeneas did, they would be ignored. 

Lacking Respect

The second major transition we will discuss is the lack of respect later Romans have for the dead. During the time of Polybius, “Whenever one of their illustrious men dies, in the course of his funeral the body is carried with every kind of honour into the Forum” (Finley). The funeral was an incredibly high honor and relations would sacrifice much to have their relative properly and respectfully buried. This procession was a highly important part of every Roman family and was found throughout Roman culture. As with the trend of our discussion, this respect was lost over time.

Juvenal describes that loss emphasizing, “The poor man’s crushed corpse wholly disappears, just like his soul. At home meanwhile the folk, unwitting, are washing the dishes…” (Juvenal). On one side you have crushed lifeless bodies. On the other side, people continue with their lives as if nothing had happened. The value of proper burial is clearly lost in Roman culture during Juvenal’s time. This lack of respect for the dead marks a historical turn in Roman culture. 

Lacking Honesty

The last major transition that we will discuss relates to the honesty and integrity of elected Roman officials. During Polybius’s time, it was expected that individuals be honest and trustworthy. In the Portable Greek Historians, Polybius mentions that “nothing is more disgraceful than to receive bribes and to make profit by improper means. The Carthaginians obtain office by open bribery, but among the Romans the penalty for it is death,” (Finley). Polybius emphasizes that Romans were honest whether by their own means or by force. The passage above illustrates this concept. In Rome, individuals were expected to be “model citizens”. Juvenal sheds a very different light on the subsequent morals of Roman society.

In his analysis, Juvenal characterizes politicians as corrupt thieves. In his Satire 3, he says, “No man will get my help in robbery, and therefore no governor will take me on his staff” (Juvenal). According to Juvenal, bribes and lies were a part of the political game. He personally viewed these dealings as corrupt. During this time, one could not be successful without wealth and influence. Wealth was attained through dishonest dealings and power was attained through copious bribes.

Changing Morals

In conclusion, it is clear to see how drastically the morals of Roman society changed within a century. The enduring records and stories created by Polybius, Vergil, and Juvenal paint a detailed picture on what it was like living during these periods. The drastic change in Roman morals could be due to the changing wants of Roman citizens. The altering morals are a testament to how easily people and cultures evolve. This relationship between the two contrasting times parallels with the pendulum concept representing human nature. We will swing one direction to a time of honesty and goodness just to swing back to a time of corruption and turmoil.

Works Cited

• Vergil, and Lombardo, S. (2006). The Essential Aeneid. Indianapolis: Hackett Pub. Co., pp. 64. 
• Finley, M. I. The Greek Historians: The Essence of Herodotus, Thucydides, Xenophon, Polybius. Penguin Books, pp. 496-499. 
• Juvenal, Ramsay, G. G. Juvenal: Satire 3. Harvard University Press, pp. 126, 249, 41. Available at: https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/ancient/juv-sat3eng.asp [Accessed 4 June 2018].

Blog 1 - Pride

Pride is just as prevalent in our culture today as it was in ancient Greece. I will be comparing the meaning of pride and how it varies between Latter-Day Saint culture and ancient Greek culture. I will address this by first defining pride in each culture, reviewing similarities, and addressing the consequences of pride in both cultures.

Building from the wise words of President Benson, Elder Dieter Uchtdorf in his talk "Pride and the Priesthood" clearly encompasses the meaning of pride in today’s day and age. He describes pride as a “sin of comparison”. He goes on to explain that this feeling “breeds hatred and hostility” adding to “self-elevation [and] self-glorification” (Uchtdorf, 2018). This exact definition of pride can be found in Greek tradition as well. The word pride stems from the Greek word hubris which means excessive pride against the gods. An example of this concept can be found in the story of Odysseus and the Cyclops. In that story, Odysseus and his men are desperate for help after traveling on the sea. They land on the island of the cyclopes and seek refuge there. After Odysseus pleads for refuge, the cyclops rejects his offering despite potential wrath from the gods for the broken law of hospitality. The cyclops replied by saying:  

“You’re dumb, stranger, or from far away,

If you ask me to fear the gods. Cyclops

Don’t care about Zeus or his aegis

Or the blessed gods, since we are much stronger” 
            (Homer, Lombardo and Murnaghan, 2009).

In this passage, we can see the cyclops exhibiting exorbitant amounts of arrogance not only disregarding the laws set in place by the gods, but also claiming that he is stronger than the gods. Arrogance is an exemplifying attitude of pride in Greek culture. 

When studying the Iliad, we discussed the prevalence of pride in Greek culture. Every individual wanted to have pride and honor, and it sometimes became a conflict of interest. One of these situations occurred when Agamemnon attempts to persuade Achilles to join him in battle. In class we talked about how Agamemnon should have apologized in person to Achilles, but this would have resulted in the loss of his pride. The opposite would have happened if Achilles had joined Agamemnon (Homer, Lombardo and Murnaghan, 2009). As you can see, this resulted in a battle of pride and a no-win situation. While reviewing this story in class we discussed how being proud wasn’t necessarily bad. It becomes bad if your pride is excessive and you put your will against God’s will and the greater good. Elder Uchtdorf makes this distinction emphasizing that being prideful is when you put yourself before others, but you can be proud of certain things if you praise them without comparison. 

            The consequences for pride may have been more extreme for the Greeks then it is for us. Elder Uchtdorf emphasizes that pride is a “cancer” and “gateway sin” (Uchtdorf, 2018). Pride is the foundation and justification for all other sins. When living a prideful life, there are significant spiritual ramifications. As a “gateway sin”, pride could lead to a degenerate society and culture. Although pride causes many spiritual problems, we don’t have physical punishments for pride like Greeks did. In The Portable Greek Historians, we read about the pride and honor Croesus sought when urging to be named happiest of all mortals. Because he exhibited excessive amounts of pride, the gods sent him a “dream in the night, which foreshadowed him truly the evils that were about to befall him in the person of his son” (Finley, 1977). During Greek times, the gods didn’t hold back their punishment. This usually resulted in the death or destruction of one’s relations or property.

Today, we experience significant spiritual consequences for having too much pride in our hearts. Elder Uchtdorf encouraged us to lose this mentality and to focus on charity and the pure love of Christ. Despite suffering spiritual hardship, we are typically not physically punished like the Greeks were. It was made clear in the Greek culture that if you were going to exhibit excess pride, there would be ramifications and the gods would not show mercy. 

Works Cited

• Uchtdorf, D. (2018). Pride and the Priesthood - Dieter F. Uchtdorf. [online] Lds.org. Available at: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2010/10/pride-and-the-priesthood?lang=eng [Accessed 15 May 2018].  
• Homer, Lombardo, S. and Murnaghan, S. (2009). The Essential Homer. Indianapolis: Hackett Pub. Co., pp.306.     
• Homer, Lombardo, S. and Murnaghan, S. (2009). The Essential Homer. Indianapolis: Hackett Pub. Co., pp.298-314. 
  
• Finley, M. (1977). The Greek historians. Harmondsworth, Eng.: Penguin Books, pp.44-45.