Challenging Gender Roles: Maecenas, Velleius Paterculus Hist. II.88.2

Erat tunc urbis custodiis praepositus C. Maecenas equestri, sed splendido genere natus, vir, ubi res vigiliam exigeret, sane ex omnis, providens atque agendi sciens, simul vero aliquid ex negotio remitti posset, otio ac mollitiis paene ultra, feminam fluens, non minus Agrippa Caesari carus, sed minus honoratus (quippe vixit angusti clavi plene contentus), nec minora consequi potuit, sed non tam concupivit. 

--Velleius Paterulus, Historiae Romanae, II.88.2-3

At that time, C. Maecenas was in charge of the city's guards. Maecenas was a member of the Equestrian order, and born of an illustrious background. In times of crisis, he was very dilligent, almost prophetic in perceiving what needed to be done.  However, he was just as extreme once work was done, being over-the-top in reveling in effeminate pleasure, even more so; he was practically dripping with femininity. He was no less dear to Augustus Caesar than Agrippa, despite being bestowed with less honors, since he was content to remain in his social class. He could have achieved the same level of political influence as Agrippa if he had wanted to, but he had no desire to do so.

VELLEIUS PATERCULUS	MAP:
Name:  Velleius Paterculus Date:  19 BCE – 31 CE Works:  Roman History	REGION  1
BIO:	Timeline:
Velleius Paterculus was an Italian-born Roman statesman and author. Writing a generation after the publication of Livy’s massive history, Velleius reinvented the genre by creating a succinct abbreviated text that fits all of Roman history, from Aeneas’ flight from Troy to the reign of Augustus, into two volumes.	SILVER AGE ROME

A Lesson Plan: The Girl Loves the Poet: Active / Passive Love Triangles

The Girl Loves the Poet: Active / Passive Love Triangles

A Lesson Plan

Target Audience:
This lesson is appropriate for second semester Latin students

Objective:
Students Will Be Able To:  differentiate active and passive voice by creating modeled Latin sentences using manipulatives

Essential Questions

• What is the difference between Active and Passive voice?
• How do you create passive voice in English?
• How do you create passive voice in Latin?
• What are some signal words for passive voice in English and Passive voice?

The Girl Loves the Poet: Active / Passive Love Triangles

A Lesson Plan: Love, Hate & War: Trojan War Valentines

Love, Hate & War: Trojan War Valentines

Target Audience: 

This lesson is appropriate for all Latin students

Objective:

Students Will Be Able To: create a Valentine’s Day card in the perspective of a Trojan War figure based on internet research of Greco-Roman mythology 

Essential Questions:

• Why does the Trojan War matter?
• How is the Trojan War relevant today?
• What can we learn by comparing different cultures' perspectives on gender and sexuality?

LGBT Meets SPQR Lesson Plan 4: Trojan War Valentines

What's In A Name? A Relationship Glossary

The following chart provides a list of vocabulary for married couples:

Feminae (Women)	Incerti (Gender Neutral)	Viri (Men)
Nouns: Domina (Cat. LXI.31) Femina (Cat. LXI.173) Mulier (Cat.LXX.1) Uxor (Cat. LXI.178) Verbs: nubo, -ere (Mart.IX.10.1)	Nouns: Coniunx (Cat. LXI.32) Verbs: coniungo, -ere (Cat. LXIV.373)	Nouns: Dominus (Cat.XLV.14) Maritus (Cat. LXI.55) Vir (Cat.LXI.3) Verbs: uxorem duco, -ere (Mart.IX.10.2)

The following chart provides a list of vocabulary for dating couples:

IF YOU’RE A…
	Feminae (Women)		Incerti (Gender Neutral)	Viri (Men)
You Call Yourself A…	Puella (Sulpic.V.1)		Amans (Ovid, Met.4.73)	Amans (Ovid, Met.4.73) Amator (Ovid, Am.I.iv.39)
You Call Your Partner A…	Femina: Amica   (Mart.Ep.VII.70.2)	Vir: Dominus  (Ovid, Am.III.vii.11) Iuvenis (CIL VI.37965) Vir (Plaut. Casina,Act II, Sc. 1, line 17)	Amantem (Cat.LXXIII.3) Amores  (Cat.X.1) Deliciae*  (Cat.XXII.2)	Femina: Amica   (Cat.LXXII.3) Domina  (Prop. El.I.i.21) Mulier  (Cat.LXXI.1) Puella  (Cat.VII.4)	Vir: Puer  (Mart.Ep.IV.42.14)

This list is far from complete. Since a majority of Latin literature was written by men, there is more data for men's relationship terminology. Traditionally, however, if the object of the man's desire was a woman, he would call her his puella (regardless of age); if the object of the man's desire was male, he would call him his puer (regardless of age).  Although no author self-identifies as a puer in the nominative case, the term can be used to refer to another man (often a poet's rival, cf. Horace, Odes I.5.1). Gender neutral terms (amores, delicias) would often be used in the plural, but sometimes in the singular (amanti/em). It is important to note, however, that although the term deliciae was used often with positive connotations (e.g., the Emperor Titus was called amor et deliciae generis humani, Suetonius, Titus.1), the phrase "in deliciis" almost always refers to a non-consenting partner (usually a slave sexually abused, cf. Pliny, Hist. Nat. vii.34). 

Just Say No: Britomartis, Antoninus Liberalis, Met. XL

TRIGGER WARNING: rape, attempted rape

Carme, filia fuit Phoenicis, Agenoris f. et Cassiepiae, Arabii filiae. Cum hac Carma Jupiter congressus, Britomartim genuit: quae hominum fugiens consuetudinem, perpetuam virginitatem amplexa, primum ex Phoenicia Argos devenit ad Erasini filias, Byzem, Melitam, Maeram, et Anchiroam. Deinde Argis in Cephalleniam profecta, estque ab incolis nominata Laphria, sacrisque numinis instar honorata. Venit inde in Cretam: visamque Minos, cum amore eius captus esset, insecutus est. Ea ad piscatores confugit, ab iisque subter retia occultata est. Unde Cretenses eam Dictynnam nuncuparunt, et sacris sunt venerati. Evitato Minoe, Britomartis cum Andromede piscatore navigio Aeginam venit. Cumque piscator eam comprimere conaretur, relicto navigio, in lucum confugit, ubi nunc eius fanum est, ibique e medio est sublata.

--Antoninus Liberalis, Metamorphoses XL, translated from the Greek by Wilhelm Xylander


Agenor's son Phoenix had a daughter with Cassiepiae named Carme. When Jupiter raped Carme, she gave birth to Britomartis. Britomartis avoided the company of men, vowing perpetual virginity. First she left Phoenicia to go to Argos, joining the Erasinus' daughters Byze, Melita, Maera, and Anchiroa. Then she set out for Cephallenia, where she was named Laphria by its inhabitants, who worshipped her as if she were divine.    Then she went to Crete: but once King Minos saw her, he desired her and tried to rape her; she ran towards fishermen, seeking their help, but was tangled in their fishnets. [That's why Cretans call her Dictynna, "netted one"]. Safely avoiding Minos, Britomartis traveled by ship to Aegina with the help of the fisherman Andromedus. But when the fisherman also tried to rape her, she jumped from the ship and fled to a grove, where she disappeared from the eyes of men. There's a shrine there now in her honor.

ANTONINUS LIBERALIS	MAP:
Name: Antoninus Liberalis   Date:  2nd – 3rd c. CE Works:  Metamorphoses*	REGION  UNKNOWN
BIO:	Timeline:
Little is known about the life of the Greek author Antoninus Liberalis. His work, Metamorphoses, is similar to the works of Hyginus in that they provide brief summaries of Greek and Roman myths.	ROMAN GREECE

W/W: Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty: Galinthias, Antoninus Liberalis, Metam. XXIX

Thebis Proteus filiam habuit Galinthiadem, ludi et vitae soliditate iunctam virginem Alcumenae, filiae Electrionis. Cum parturiret Alcmena Herculem, Parcae et Lucina in gratiam Iunonis eam in doloribus detinuerunt, manibus suis constrictis sedentes. Ibi Galinthias verita ne ex doloribus moreretur Alcmena, ad Parcas et Lucinam accurrit, nuncians Iovis voluntate puerum ab Alcmena partu editum, actumqe esse de ipsarum honoribus. Ad hoc obstupuerunt Parcae, statimque manus dimiserunt. Illico etiam Alcmena soluta doloribus, Herculem est enixa. Ad hoc Parcae luctum instituerunt: et Galinthiadi, quod mortalis deas decepisset, virginitatem ademerunt, inque fraudulentam mutaverunt felem.

--Antoninus Liberalis, Metamorphoses XXIX, trans. from the Greek by Wilhelm Xylander

The Theban Proteus had a daughter named Galinthias, who was inseparable from her dear friend Alcmena (Electrion's daughter). When Alcmena was pregnant with Hercules, Juno's henchmen Lucina [goddess of childbirth] and the Fates beset her limbs to keep her from giving birth.  Fearing that Alcmena would die in childbirth, Galinthias ran up to the goddesses and thanked them, proclaiming that Alcmena had already given birth by the will of Jupiter. Hearing this, the goddesses were thunderstruck, and released Alcmena in their daze. Once she was free from their control, Alcmena was able to give birth to Hercules.  Angered that a mortal had deceived them, the goddesses smote Galinthias, stripping her of her womanly shape and turning her into a [pole]cat. 

ANTONINUS LIBERALIS	MAP:
Name: Antoninus Liberalis   Date:  2nd – 3rd c. CE Works:  Metamorphoses*	REGION  UNKNOWN
BIO:	Timeline:
Little is known about the life of the Greek author Antoninus Liberalis. His work, Metamorphoses, is similar to the works of Hyginus in that they provide brief summaries of Greek and Roman myths.	ROMAN GREECE

A Lesson Plan: Gender Roles and Sexuality in Judeo-Christian and Greco-Roman Creation Myths

“Feet of Clay:” 

Analyzing Gender Roles and Sexual Mores in Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian Creation Myths: 

A Lesson Plan

Target Audience:

This lesson is appropriate for third semester Latin students.

Objective:

Students Will Be Able To:  analyze Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian creation myths to infer their culture’s perceptions of gender roles and sexual mores

Essential Questions:

• What is gender? What is the difference between sex and gender?
• What are gender roles? Are gender roles good or bad?
• What does a culture’s creation myth tell us about their perspectives of gender, gender roles, and sexuality?
• How can studying a culture’s literary products provide insight into their perspectives?
• What can we learn by comparing different cultures’ perspectives on gender and sexuality?

LGBT Meets SPQR Lesson Plan 3: Feet of Clay

M/M: Call Me By Your Name: Alexander the Great and Hephaestion, Quintus Curtius Rufus, Hist. Alex. III.xii.15-17

Iamque iustis defunctorum corporibus solutis, [Alexander] praemittit ad captivas qui nuntiarent ipsum venire, inhibitaque comitantium turba, tabernaculum cum Hephaestione intrat. Is longe omnium amicorum carissimus erat regi, cum ipso pariter eductus, secretorum omnium arbiter, lbertatis quoque in admonendo eo non alius plus habebat, quod tamen ita usurpabat ut magis a rege permissum quam vindicatum ab eo videretur. Et sicut aetate par erat regi, ita corporis habitu praestabat. Ergo reginae, illum esse regem ratae, suo more veneratae sunt. Inde ex captivis spadonibus quis Alexander esset monstrantibus, Sisigambis advoluta est pedibus eius, ignorationem numquam antea visa regis excusans. Quam manu allevans rex: "Non errasti," inquit, "Mater, nam et hic Alexander est."

--Quintus Curtius, Historiae Alexandri Magni, III.xii.15 - 17

After the battle's casualties were buried with proper dignity,  Alexander sent a message to announce to the Persian captives that he would visit them. He entered the captive queen's tent without his retinue, only bringing Hephaestion with him. Hephaestion was by far Alexander's best friend, a boyhood companion who was raised in the same household as the king. He was Alexander's closest confidant, and had the most liberties in monitoring and criticizing the man's behavior, a feat that seemed to be more encouraged by Alexander himself than Hephaestion's own impulse. And although they were the same age, Hephaestion had a more kingly presence than Alexander. Therefore when the queen saw Hephaestion, she assumed he was the king and bowed before him in the Persian manner. When one of the captive court's eunuchs pointed out to her who the real Alexander was,  Queen Sisigambis threw herself at Alexander's feet, apologizing that she did not know which was which. Alexander took the queen by her hand and lifted her back to her feet, saying, "You weren't wrong, Queen Mother;  this man is also Alexander."

QUINTUS CURTIUS RUFUS	MAP:
Name:  Quintus Curtius Rufus Date:  1st c. CE Works:  History of Alexander the Great	REGION  UNKNOWN
BIO:	Timeline:
Quintus Curtius Rufus was a Roman statesman and author who lived during the reign of the Julio-Claudian emperors. Although much of his work is lost, the remaining fragments of his History of Alexander the Great provide insight into the life of the great hero.	GOLDEN AGE ROME

For Love of a. . . Sappho, fr. 102

Dulcis mater, non possum profecto pulsare telam, desiderio domita [pueri / puellae?] gracilem per Venerem.

γλύκηα μᾶτερ, οὔτοι δύναμαι κρέκην τὸν ἴστον

πόθῳ δάμεισα παῖδος βραδίναν δι’ Ἀφροδίταν.

--Sappho fr. 102; translated from the Greek by Christian Frederick Neue, 1827.


Sweet mother, I can no longer work the loom, for I am undone by my love for a …,
thanks to the sublime Venus

* Although the narrator is clearly a woman (δάμεισα is feminine), the gender of the narrator's crush is unknown, as παῖς can mean young child, young man, or young woman. Is the narrator yearning for motherhood (literal meaning of παῖς) ? Does she love a young man (ὁ παῖς)? Does she love a young woman (ἡ παῖς)? The tantalizing ambiguity of this passage makes it one of the most poignant and universally beloved poems of the ancient world.

SAPPHO	MAP:
Name:  Σαπφώ / Sappho Date:  630 – 570 BCE Works:  <lost: only fragments remain>	REGION  5
BIO:	Timeline:
Sappho was universally applauded by the ancient world as the “Tenth Muse.” Because she was one of the earliest Greek lyric poets, there is very little definitive information on Sappho’s life.  It is generally agreed that Sappho was a wealthy noblewoman from the island of Lesbos who had three brothers and a daughter named Kleis. She used her prominent social position to support a cohort of other women artists, and composed many poems about them, expressing her love for them, praising their beauty, and celebrating their marriages. Whereas earlier Greek poetry was epic poetry with serious themes of gods, warfare, and the state, Sappho’s lyric poetry is emotional, intimate and personal. Her poetry centers around womanhood and womanly love, providing rare insight into social mores of the time period. The modern term “lesbian” (a woman who is attracted to another woman) reveals the longevity of her impact upon western culture [NOTE: Although “lesbian” is the accepted term in modern English, authors in the ancient world used a different word for a homosexual woman, and only occasionally used the term “lesbian” euphemistically]. Unfortunately, although her poetry was universally revered by the Greeks and Romans alike, Sappho’s works only exist as fragments, adding mysterious allure to her larger-than-life status but unfortunately hindering our understanding of her life and thoughts.	Archaic Greek

A Marble Hermaphroditus: Martial, Epigr. XIV.174

TRIGGER WARNING: The intersex mythological figure Hermaphroditus was portrayed frequently as a curiosity in ancient Roman art.

Masculus intravit fontis: emersit utrumque:
pars est una patris, cetera matris habet.

--Martial, Epigr. XIV.174

He entered the spring, but they emerged from it.
Their body has one part of a man's; the rest is a woman's.

MARTIAL	MAP:
Name: Marcus Valerius Martialis Date:  40 CE – 104 CE Works:  Epigrammaton Libri XV*                De Spectaculis	REGION  2 (Hispania)
BIO:	Timeline:
Originally from Bilbilis, Hispania, the poet Martial moved to Rome in the 60s CE to advance his career. His two extant works include de Spectaculis, a collection of poems written to commemorate the opening of the Colosseum, and a fifteen volume collection of epigrams. These epigrams provide valuable insight into the mores and private lives of men and women from all of the city’s social classes.	SILVER AGE ROME

M/M: The Myth of Hyacinthus, Martial, Epig. XIV.173

Flectit ab inviso morientia lumina disco
Oebalius, Phoebi culpa dolorque, puer.

--Martial, Epig. XIV.173

The young descendant of Oebalus turns his dying eyes
from the wretched discus.
This is your fault, Phoebus, but it is also your grief.

MARTIAL	MAP:
Name: Marcus Valerius Martialis Date:  40 CE – 104 CE Works:  Epigrammaton Libri XV*                De Spectaculis	REGION  2 (Hispania)
BIO:	Timeline:
Originally from Bilbilis, Hispania, the poet Martial moved to Rome in the 60s CE to advance his career. His two extant works include de Spectaculis, a collection of poems written to commemorate the opening of the Colosseum, and a fifteen volume collection of epigrams. These epigrams provide valuable insight into the mores and private lives of men and women from all of the city’s social classes.	SILVER AGE ROME

Equal to Men: Quintus of Smyrna, Posthomerica 1.407-434

Inspired by the Amazon Penthesilea's Fighting, Tisiphone Encourages the Trojan Women to Join Their Men in Battle 

“Amicae, fortem pectoribus animum infigite,

Non minus quam viri nostri, qui pro patria

Contra hostes parentum et nostrae salutis causa propugnant,

Nunquam ab aerumnis respirantes, Agedum et ipsae,

Indita pectoribus fiducia, ad similem nos pugnam accingamus!

Non enim multum a iuvenibus absumus robustis,

Sed quale ipsis est robur, nobis etiam est,

Paresque oculi, et genua, et omnia similia:

Lux etiam omnibus communis, et liquidus aer,

Nec diversum est nutrimentum. Et quid aliud viris, Quo nos praecellant,

Adposuit Deus? Ideo certamen hostile nequaquam defugiamus.

Nonne videtis feminam viris longe praestare

Bellacibus? Cuius neque familia in propinquo est,

Neque urbs sua: sed pro rege externo,

Ex animo belligeratur. Nec magnifacit viros,

Eam pectore virtutem, tam imperterritum complexa est animum.

Nobis autem aliunde aliae ante pedes miseriae obiectae sunt,

Aliis enim cari liberi et mariti ante urbem

Perierunt. Aliae parentes deploramus non ultra superstites,

Aliae ob fratrum et propinquorum necem

Animi se discruciant. Nulla enim a calamitosissima infelicitate

Immunis est. Addite, quod metuendum, ne diem servitute gravem

Videamus. Ideo nulla pugnandi mora

Sit tantopere adflictis. Satius est in proelio

Occumbere , quam ab alienigenis postmodum, necessitate

Tristi coactas, una cum infantibus liberis abduci

Urbe incendio absumta, et viris e medio sublatis.”

‘ὦ φίλαι, ἄλκιμον ἦτορ ἐνὶ στέρνοισι λαβοῦσαι
ἀνδράσιν ἡμετέροισιν ὁμοίιον, οἳ περὶ πάτρης
δυσμενέσιν μάρνανται ὑπὲρ τεκέων τε καὶ ἡμέων,
οὔποτ᾽ ἀναπνείοντες ὀϊζύος—ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐταὶ
παρθέμεναι φρεσὶ θυμὸν ἴσης μνησώμεθα χάρμης:
οὐ γὰρ ἀπόπροθέν εἰμεν ἐϋσθενέων αἰζηῶν,
ἀλλ᾽ οἷον κείνοισι πέλει μένος ἔστι καὶ ἡμῖν:
ἶσοι δ᾽ ὀφθαλμοὶ καὶ γούνατα, πάντα δ᾽ ὁμοῖα,
ξυνὸν δ᾽ αὖ πάντεσσι φάος καὶ νήχυτος ἀήρ,
φορβὴ δ᾽ οὐχ ἑτέρη: δί δ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἀνδράσι λώιον ἄλλο
θῆκε θεός; τῷ μή τι φεβώμεθα δηιοτῆτα.
ἢ οὐχ ὁράατε γυναῖκα μέγ᾽ αἰζηῶν προφέρουσαν
ἀγχεμάχων; τῆς δ᾽ οὔτι πέλει σχεδὸν οὔτε γενέθλη
οὔτ᾽ ἄρ᾽ ἑὸν πτολίεθρον, ὑπὲρ ξείνοιο δ᾽ ἄνακτος
μάρναται ἐκ θυμοῖο καὶ οὐκ ἐμπάζεται ἀνδρῶν
ἐνθεμένη φρεσὶ θάρσος ἀταρτηρόν τε νόημα:
ἡμῖν δ᾽ ἄλλοθεν ἄλλα παραὶ ποσὶν ἄλγεα κεῖται:
τῇς μὲν γὰρ φίλα τέκνα καὶ ἀνέρες ἀμφὶ πόληι
ὤλλυνθ᾽, αἱ δὲ τοκῆας ὀδυρόμεθ᾽ οὐκέτ᾽ ἐόντας:
ἄλλαι δ᾽ αὖτ᾽ ἀκάχηνται ἀδελφειῶν ἐπ᾽ ὀλέθρῳ
καὶ πηῶν: οὐ γάρ τις ὀϊζυρῆς κακότητος
ἄμμορος: ἐλπωρὴ δὲ πέλει καὶ δούλιον ἦμαρ
εἰσιδέειν: τῷ μή τις ἔτ᾽ ἀμβολίη πολέμοιο
εἴη τειρομένῃσιν: ἔοικε γὰρ ἐν δαῒ μᾶλλον
τεθνάμεν ἢ μετόπισθεν ὑπ᾽ ἀλλοδαποῖσιν ἄγεσθαι
νηπιάχοις ἅμα παισὶν ἀνιηρῇ ὑπ᾽ ἀνάγκῃ
ἄστεος αἰθομένοιο καὶ ἀνδρῶν οὐκέτ᾽ ἐόντων.’

--Quintus of Smyrna, Posthomerica 1.407 - 434; translated into Latin by Laurentius Rhodomannus

"Friends, instill courage into your hearts,
like our husbands, who never waiver in their fight against the enemy to keep us safe.
Come on, now,
let us take up the mantle of bravery, let us join the fight alongside them!
For we are not so different from these men in strength; we also have strength in our bodies. Our eyes are the same, our knees are the same, everything is the same!
We share the same daylight, the same fresh air, the same food. What difference has God given to them, to make them so much better than us?
So let's not shirk our role in this fight.
[Look at the Amazon Penthesilea fighting:]
Don't you see this lone woman holding her own against men on the battlefield? She's not doing this for her family or neighbors. She's not even fighting for her homeland; she's merely fighting as a mercenary for a foreign king, just for her own personal benefit.  She doesn't care whom she fights, she's not afraid, she has virtue in her heart, and a fearless mind. 
But we and other women
are groveling and beset with misery, while our dear children and husbands die in front of us. Some of us weep for parents no longer alive,  some of us weep for a dead brother or neighbor. No one here is free from this wretched suffering.
  And what's more, we must fear the life of servitude at war's end.  So let's stop dithering and fight! It is more fulfilling to die in battle than to die as someone's slave!  Compelled by such sorrowful necessity, we would be taken as slaves from our burning homeland, with orphaned infants in our arms, their fathers dead upon the ground."

QUINTUS OF SMYRNA	MAP:
Name:  Quintus Smyrnaeus Date:  4th c. CE Works:  Posthomerica	REGION  5
BIO:	Timeline:
Quintus of Smyrna was a Greek poet who lived during the 4th century CE. His epic poem, the Posthomerica, was a fourteen volume epic depicting the events of the later half of the Trojan War; this epic preserves many literary sources that are no longer extant.	POST CONSTANTINOPLE GREEK LIT.