Children, Memory, and Family Identity in Roman Culture

ISBN 10: 0199582572 / ISBN 13: 9780199582570

Published by Oxford University Press, GB, 2010

About this Item

Investigations into the daily life of Roman families show that children were key actors in the process of the construction of social memory: they were the pivotal point of the transmission of family tradition and values in both elite and non-elite families. This collection of essays draws together the perspectives of various disciplines to provide a multifaceted picture of the Roman family based on a wide range of evidence drawn from the 1st century BCE to Late Antiquity and the Christian period. The contributors define the notion of memory, discuss the role of children in the transmission of social memory and social identities, and also deal with threats to familial memory, in the cases of children deliberately or accidentally excluded from tradition, long believed to be invisible, such as those born at home to slaves, or outcast because of illness or their unusual status, for example as the offspring of an incestuous relationship.

Seller Inventory # LU-9780199582570

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Children, Memory, and Family Identity in Roman Culture
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, GB
• Publication Date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0199582572
• ISBN 13: 9780199582570
• Binding: Hardback
• Condition: New
• Weight: 691 grams

About this title

Synopsis

Investigations into the daily life of Roman families show that children were key actors in the process of the construction of social memory: they were the pivotal point of the transmission of family tradition and values in both elite and non-elite families. This collection of essays draws together the perspectives of various disciplines to provide a multifaceted picture of the Roman family based on a wide range of evidence drawn from the 1st century BCE to Late Antiquity and the Christian period. The contributors define the notion of memory, discuss the role of children in the transmission of social memory and social identities, and also deal with threats to familial memory, in the cases of children deliberately or accidentally excluded from tradition, long believed to be invisible, such as those born at home to slaves, or outcast because of illness or their unusual status, for example as the offspring of an incestuous relationship.

About the Author

Veronique Dasen is Professor of Classical Archaeology, University of Fribourg

Thomas Spath is Professor of Ancient Cultures and Constructions of Antiquity, University of Bern