Open AccessTragic Imagery of War in Roman Visual Culture
Author(s) -
Lindsay Prazak
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
constellations
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2562-0509
DOI - 10.29173/cons10490
Subject(s) - victory , scope (computer science) , perspective (graphical) , spanish civil war , roman art , perception , history , art , aesthetics , law , ancient history , political science , visual arts , archaeology , philosophy , politics , computer science , epistemology , programming language
In this paper, the scope of Roman attitudes towards warfare is examined through an analysis of Roman artwork and inscriptions in victory monuments. Due to the integral nature of warfare to Roman society, the portrayal of victorious campaigns was essential to the maintenance of the Roman perception of their own indomitable nature. This paper argues that this inherent reinforcing of Roman attitudes was especially important in the wake of the various civil wars and related disputes of the last century of the Republic, and undertakes this analysis with a special emphasis on the portrayal of the conquered to examine the subtleties of perspective towards Roman warfare.