Seminar 10 Worksheet

Seminar 10 Worksheet: The Foundations of Rome The goal of the seminar worksheets is to allow students to reflect and expand on concepts about Greco-Roman mythology, while practicing writing skills and the ability to analyze and think critically about a primary source. It is also an opportunity for students to demonstrate their engagement with the course materials and their understanding of the course content for that week. In crafting your responses, you should draw upon lecture materials, seminar material and the primary source readings for the week. You may also draw upon knowledge gained from other courses, your own personal experiences and your own knowledge. Please be sure to cite any direct quotations or paraphrased information from the primary sources, that you use in your responses. Information about citations can be found under the Assignments tab in Contents. During Week 11, we looked how Roman myth differs from Greek and the major foundation myths of Rome. Below are 2 questions which deal with these topics. Please answer one (1) of the two (2) questions. If you choose to answer both only the first will be marked. Be sure to answer all part of the question you choose. 1. Why does Aeneas go to the underworld? Who does his father Anchises point out to him? Who are these individuals and why are they important? Why do you think that Vergil includes this scene? (What is it doing here/what message is he attempting to convey?) Aeneas goes to the underworld because of words a priestess told him, inquiring that if he buried somebody’s lifeless body in a tomb, he would be able to reach the underworld to visit his father, Anchises (Vergil’s Aeneid). While down there Anchises points out two boys who he tells them are his sons, he has with his wife Lavinia (Vergil’s Aeneid). It’s important as it shows his reign in Italy, as well as his long ancestral line that starts with him. The importance of adding this in, shows the long story to the Romain empire and ruling, where he even is introduced to Julius Caesar and the long line of successors that are considered heroes. 2. Describe two ways that Roman myth differs from Greek myth and provide examples from the two readings (Livy’s Ab Urbe Condita Book 1 and Vergil’s Aeneid Book 6).