Talking About Time

No doubt that almost all of you, if not all, are confused by the title of the post. What is this about? Why is Lucius going to be discussing time? What in God’s name does Lucius mean by “talking about time?” Is this post going to be about time management in antiquity? No, this isn’t going to be about time management in antiquity, though that would be fascinating. This post is about being specific about the time when discussing ancient Rome and Greece.

Now, long story short, I was reading a book. What book is irrelevant because it wasn’t about the classics. The author discussed character flaws, noting that a cheating wife in rural Georgia is flawed, but that flaw wouldn’t be the same in ancient Rome due to the different social consequences and setting. Now, the author said the social consequences would be less for the Roman cheating wife because the moral values between societies are different. This is wrong, since the Roman cheating wife wouldn’t be shunned, like the Georgian wife; she would be killed.

But, correcting the author isn’t the point; that’s why I’m not mentioning their name. The fact is that while he specified 1950s rural Georgia for a more modern example, for an ancient example, he said “ancient Rome.” No one likes memorizing dates, but they are essential when dealing with large concepts such as ancient Rome, which, if we define it as the time period between the traditional founding of the city in 753 B.C. and the fall of the western empire in 476 A.D., we get 1,229 years. During those twelve hundred years, social norms fluctuated, and what was acceptable behavior changed. It’s not simply enough to say “ancient Rome.”

Dates are needed to distinguish time. Now, do you need to give a date for everything? No. If you are talking about the classical period of ancient Greece, then it’s enough to say “during the classical period.” Likewise, if you’re discussing the Crisis of the Third Century (as I have), it would be redundant to say “in the third century,” and it probably would be easier to name an emperor, so that the reader isn’t confused by so many dates.

This is a short post, that’s why it’s being published during the week and not on a Saturday, but I think it’s an important topic to touch on because while ancient Greece and ancient Rome are widely used, we have to remember that these are extensive terms and be careful not to generalize. There will be a post this Saturday, it’s on Sappho, so look out for that. As always, thanks for reading.