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Continue reading →: Cicero and the Power of Fear
Catiline launched his famous conspiracy in Rome to consolidate personal power. After losing the consulship to Cicero, he assembled an army to march on the Republic’s capital. In response, Cicero gave four orations to the Senate. All of them were masterful works of rhetoric. Through speech alone, Catiline was…
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Continue reading →: A Defense For Catiline
Cicero was the most renowned orator in Rome. When Catiline launched a conspiracy to overthrow the Roman government, Cicero attacked him vehemently. His first speech against Catiline was before the Roman Senate in the Temple of Jupiter. It became one of his most famous orations, forcing Catiline to flee Rome.…
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Continue reading →: Conflicting Religions: The Difference Between Christianity and Greek Religion
Rome inherited the Greek’s polytheistic religion, but in the first century AD, a new religion emerged. Christianity took the world by storm. Eventually, it made the ancient Greek religion obsolete. Nero, Titus, and Domitian were a few of the emperors who persecuted the Christian Church because it undermined their gods.…
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Continue reading →: Man’s Unique Good According to Seneca
The Roman philosopher Seneca was often considered Nero’s leash. The psychotic and blood-thirsty maniac emperor was most reasonable in the first five years of his reign when Seneca’s influence as an advisor permeated Nero. As the Roman monarch lost his mind, Seneca distanced himself more. But while we mostly remember…
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Continue reading →: Julio-Claudian and Flavian Dynasties
Rome peaked after Augustus idealized a proven method for emperors to maintain power. The Julio-Claudian and Flavian dynasties contained some of the most notorious, insane, delusional, and erratic emperors in history. This essay seeks to answer whether all were the same or how they differentiated their lunacy. Octavian was very…
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Continue reading →: Orestia Trilogy
The Orestia Trilogy is a story about the death, curses, and misfortune haunting one family. Over time, it became a classic Greek play because of its poetry and tragic quality. This essay is about the final play in the trilogy and will answer whether the outcome was just. It will…
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Continue reading →: Orestes and Counterfeit Justice
The Libation Bearers is Aeschylus’ play following Agamemnon. While I already wrote an essay about Agamemnon, here is a quick review of the play before delving into The Libation Bearers: Agamemnon went on a campaign against Troy as a personal vendetta against its king. In the process, he offered his…
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Continue reading →: Octavian: The Man Who Killed Rome’s RepublicOctavian was Julius Caesar’s grand-nephew and heir. Through a series of tactful alliances—first with the Senate as a pro-republic ally of Cicero opposed to Antony, then an ally of Antony and Lepidus through the second triumvirate —Octavian became the dictator after Julius Caesar. He even marched against Bruttus and Cassius,…
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Continue reading →: How Julius Caesar Sequestered and Consolidated Power in RomeJulius Caesar became the most powerful man in the world, but his journey to success was long and bloody. After the death of Sulla—a Roman commander who later became consul and restored strength to the republic’s political traditions—Rome fell under disarray. Everyone who was anyone put their hat in the…
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Continue reading →: Aeschylus on the Blowback of Agamemnon’s WarAeschylus was a Greek playwright. He wrote Agamemnon, which was about the tragedies surrounding Agamemnon, the king of Argos, and his household during the Trojan War. He and his brother Menelaus led the campaign against Troy. While King Agamemnon was successful in his siege, that victory had a price. Aeschylus…
Hello,
I’m Asher
I’m a student at Thomas Edison State, finishing up my B.A. in philosophy. I’m also a law school hopeful. You can read my random and infrequent blog posts here, getting a glimpse of the nonsense in my brain.
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