Roman Letters: History from a Personal Point of View

In this selection of letters, notable Romans write about themselves and their times, as well as about personal and public matters. Seneca provides indignant remarks about the behavior of women in Nero’s Rome. From his monastic cell in Bethlehem, St. Jerome berates St. Augustine for gossip he may have spread. Some letters give a different perspective to history, while other talk of harvests, marriages, and day-to-day events. For historical continuity, Hooper and Schwartz include a running commentary and brief biographical sketches on the writers.

Matthew B. Schwartz teaches Ancient Literature and Bible at Wayne State and Lawrence Technological Universities. He has published a number of books, including The Fruit of Her Hands: A Psychology of Biblical Woman (2007), Biblical Stories for Psychotherapy and Counseling (2004), and most recently, Politics in the Hebrew Bible (2013). He has also written many articles and reviews and has served on the editorial boards of Menorah Review and the Journal of Psychology and Judaism. Finley Hooper (1922-1993), was formerly Professor Emeritus of history at Wayne State University. He served as Visiting Assistant Professor of History at University of Michigan, where he also earned his PhD. His other books include Greek Realities: Life and Thought in Ancient Greece (1978) and Roman Realities (1978).