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Transcription
This is a podcast episode about the importance of speaking and writing in Ancient Rome. Becoming a philosopher, speaker, politician, or writer was highly admired and influential. Latin literature became prevalent during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire. Writers started small, gaining recognition and reputation. Invitations to important events like Mycenaeus' dinner parties helped gain fame. However, the message of the work had to align with the values of duty, honor, and serving Rome. The fame of literary artists was tied to their standing with the government. In future episodes, different Latin authors will be explored, including Virgil. Welcome to Little Latin Lessons for Language Lovers, where I give little lessons on Latin and the cultural impacts of this fascinating language. On today's episode of Respected vs. Rejected Latin Authors, Literature in Ancient Rome, I will be discussing the different branches of speaking in Rome, how important speaking was to the Romans, and who encouraged oratory. So let's get into it! The speeches and writings of Latin authors are one of Rome's claims to fame. Latin literature in Ancient Rome became prevalent during the Roman Republic and throughout the Roman Empire. Becoming a philosopher, speaker, politician, or writer were the most admired and sophisticated scholarly careers to the Romans. Almost all higher education that could be pursued in Rome was focused on speaking and growing in a deeper understanding of presenting the speech and writing. If you wanted to be any way influential in Rome, such as a politician, you had to know how to write and present arousing and or persuasive speech. Literary artists started out by writing small works or presenting obituaries at funerals. That way, they would gain some name recognition and develop a reputation. Sometimes writers came out with smash hits first thing, such as Virgil, who we will touch on more in the next episode. However, most literary artists had a small start. Once the authors or speakers gained some standing, they could be invited to Mycenaeus' dinner parties. Mycenaeus was a very important man, who was huge in the arts in Rome. Mycenaeus held extravagant celebrations and dinner parties at his home. Many important politicians and Roman leaders would attend, as well as many influential people in the arts. If a speaker, writer, or musician was invited to make an appearance at his home and present some of their work, they definitely would gain fame and recognition. Becoming a prominent writer, speaker, or politician in Rome was highly dependent on the message you were outputting with your work. It was very important to the Romans in charge that duty, honor, and serving Rome were the most crucial values pushed in writers' works. The fame of literary artists heavily relied on standing with the government. This led to some people who spoke their minds not being quite as accepted as others, which we will dive into in a few episodes. Overall, Latin was such an important language used to kickstart a literary movement in one of the biggest governments in the ancient world. In episodes to come, we will explore different Latin authors, learning what they wrote about and why they were accepted or rejected. So make sure to check out the next episode, because we're talking about possibly the most well-known Latin author of the golden age of Latin literature, Virgil. See you next time.
