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Romans on parade: representations of Romanness in the Triumph

Lunsford, Amber Dawn
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1085498652

Abstract Details

2004, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Greek and Latin.
We find in the Roman triumph one of the most dazzling examples of the theme of spectacle in Roman culture. The triumph, though, was much more than a parade thrown in honor of a conquering general. Nearly every aspect of this tribute has the feel of theatricality. Even the fact that it was not voluntarily bestowed upon a general has characteristics of a spectacle. One must work to present oneself as worthy of a triumph in order to gain one; military victories alone are not enough. Looking at the machinations behind being granted a triumph may possibly lead to a better understanding of how important self-representation was to the Romans. The triumph itself is, quite obviously, a spectacle. However, within the triumph, smaller and more intricate spectacles are staged. The Roman audience, the captured people and spoils, and the triumphant general himself are all intermeshed into a complex web of spectacle and spectator. Not only is the triumph itself a spectacle of a victorious general, but it also contains sub-spectacles, which, when analyzed, may give us clues as to how the Romans looke upon non-Romans, and, in turn, how they saw themselves in relation to others. If the questions at hand is one of Roman representation, then the sources for out information on triumphs become a further complication. We must consider the motivations of the authors who describe triumphs and configure them into the equation. Whether or not the author is representing the Romans in a particular way through his descriptions must be taken into account when one tries to figure out how the ROmans were representing themselves and others. Although the sources of our knowledge of triumphs may cause further complications to that same knowledge, they also make the task at hand infinitely more interesting and worthy of pursuit. Because the triumph brings out so many intricate ideas and questions about the Romans, by analyzing both the specific primary texts and the idea of hte triumph in general, we can better appreciate the cultural logic of what it means to be Romans as it is negotiated within the triumph.
Erik Gunderson (Advisor)
222 p.
TRIUMPH; ROMANS; Cicero; Plutarch; spectacle; Livy

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Lunsford, A. D. (2004). Romans on parade: representations of Romanness in the Triumph [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1085498652

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Lunsford, Amber. Romans on parade: representations of Romanness in the Triumph. 2004. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1085498652.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Lunsford, Amber. "Romans on parade: representations of Romanness in the Triumph." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2004. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1085498652

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1085498652
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© 2004, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.