Cesarstwo rzymskie

Very Short Introductions #150

by Christopher Kelly

Autor zaprasza czytelnika w podróż po historii ? od Augusta do Kommodusa ? i spuściźnie cesarstwa rzymskiego. Ukazuje je przede wszystkim jako imperium siły stosujące mieszankę przemocy, ucisku, porządku i taktycznego użycia władzy, by zapewnić trwanie jednolitej kultury. Czytelnik dowie się nie tylko, jak powstało imperium, jak nim zarządzano, jaka była religia i struktura społeczna, lecz także w jaki sposób lokalne kultury uległy romanizacji i jak ludzie w odległych krainach zaczęli wierzyć w cesarza jako boga. Znajdzie tu również szkic o tym, jak przedstawiano cesarstwo w czasach współczesnych, począwszy od oświecenia przez imperium brytyjskie czasów wiktoriańskich po najnowsze hollywoodzkie hity kinowe. * Interdyscyplinarna seria KRÓTKIE WPROWADZENIE piórem uznanych ekspertów skupionych wokół Uniwersytetu Oksfordzkiego przybliża aktualną wiedzę na temat współczesnego świata i pomaga go zrozumieć. W atrakcyjny sposób prezentuje najważniejsze zagadnienia XXI w. ? od kultury, religii, historii przez nauki przyrodnicze po technikę. To publikacje popularnonaukowe, które w formule przystępnej, dalekiej od akademickiego wykładu, prezentują wybrane kwestie. Książki idealne zarówno jako wprowadzenie do nowych tematów, jak i uzupełnienie wiedzy o tym, co nas pasjonuje. Najnowsze fakty, analizy ekspertów, błyskotliwe interpretacje. Opiekę merytoryczną nad polską edycją serii sprawują naukowcy z Uniwersytetu Łó prof. Krystyna Kujawińska Courtney, prof. Ewa Gajewska, prof. Aneta Pawłowska, prof. Jerzy Gajdka, prof. Piotr Stalmaszczyk.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Ancient History, Classics, Roman History, Audiobook, Politics

182 pages, Paperback

First published August 24, 2006

About the author

Christopher Kelly (born 1964) is a professor of classics and ancient history and a Fellow and Director of studies in classics at Corpus Christi College at the University of Cambridge, where he received his PhD in classics. He lives in Cambridge, England, and Chicago, Illinois.

He specializes in the later Roman Empire and the classical tradition. He has been Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge since 2018.

Reviews

[فؤاد · Rating 1 out of 5]

هر چقدر جمهوری روم آموزنده و مفید بود، این کتاب اتلاف وقت مطلق بود.

[Ted · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Very Short Introduction gives a nice summary of what the Roman Empire entailed. It definitely is not an introductory history of the Empire, though references to Virgil, Caesar, Augustus, Nero and the other famous emperors are scattered throughout the narrative. What Kelly has done instead is to concentrate on the period from roughly 31 BC to AD 192, when the empire was, in his words, "at the peak of its prosperity". I found it somewhat uneven; four stars for good information in most of the chapters, while a couple seemed like they could have been left out without much loss.

The book's first three chapters describe interesting and crucial aspects of the empire during this period. In these Kelly explains what it was like for the peoples scattered around the Mediterranean to become conquered by Rome (not so bad after the initial blood-letting, except for Carthage); how the cult of the God-emperors was manifested in the empire; and how the Romans allowed the prosperous and powerful social leaders of each conquered area to continue local governing.

Chapter 4 is called History Wars, and explains Hadrian's machinations (around 130 AD) to reconstitute the history of ancient Greece, as if Athens in particular had always existed as sort of a pre-Roman Rome, having the same values embraced by the Empire hundreds of years later. He contrasts Hadrian's building of Roman temples in the important Greek cities (especially the Olympieion in Athens) with the writings of Plutarch (contemporaneous with Hadrian) and Pausanias (a generation later), both of whom presented their ideas of the true history and values of ancient Athens without any reference to contemporary Roman ideals. This whole story was somewhat interesting, but frankly I didn't understand why it was there - maybe my own shortcoming.

In chapter 5, Christians to the Lions, Kelly uses the early Christian martyrs as the story line for his narrative of the blood-thirsty gladiatorial games which were so much a part of the Empire in these centuries. The topic of the Empire's main leisure-time "sport", in which all strata of society were allowed, even expected, to enjoy the public killing of thousands of animals and human beings, certainly deserves the attention that Kelly gives it. But in framing the story around the Christian victims, who were only a small part of the carnage, and in spending much of the second half of the chapter veering off into a history of the survival and growth of the Church, culminating in the acceptance of the Christian faith by Constantine in 312 AD, Kelly loses his way I think. This is a side story to the Roman Empire, whereas the blood sport in the arena was not.

Chapter 6, Living and Dying, is a very good overview of the demographics, life expectancy, general health, and diet of the people of the Empire. I felt this was a very useful topic.

Finally, chapter 7, Rome Revisited, is sort of an odd look at three views of Rome which have pertained in the modern world - the view by British academics in the early years of the twentieth century that study of the Empire was an important means for learning lessons that could be applied to their own empire; the way in which Mussolini attempted to bring back the glory of Rome as a basis for fascist Italy; and finally the view of Rome that we have received from Hollywood for the last 60 years or so. Like chapter 4, although interesting, this kind of seemed like filler.



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[[Name Redacted] · Rating 1 out of 5]

Far from being a very short introduction, this is actually a very short commentary. The author even opens by saying he sees no need for a very short introduction to the Roman Empire, since others have already undertaken similar efforts, and so simply chose to write out his analyses of various features and trends. In fact it's almost more of a very short series of very, very short commentaries. There may be a time and a place for that, but it's not what i intended to read so i'll go read something else. Frankly i'm more than a little irked that the VSI series bothered to print something so self-consciously contrary to its intended purpose and title - we have a term for that: False Advertising. As such, i'm giving it 1 star. I may one day re-read it and change my mind, based on what it is rather than what it claimed to be, but for now i'm disappointed and more than a little pissed off at the deception.

[Darwin8u · Rating 4 out of 5]

VSI 150 is an interesting take. There are plenty of histories that look at surveying the Roman Empire, so Kelly doesn't directly copy or mimic those books. VSI is meant to be brief, so rather than retreat other introductions to the Roman Empire, Kelly looks specifically at topics of Imperial Rome focused on:
1. Conquest
2. Imperial Power
3. Collusion
4. History Wars
5. Christians to the Lions
6. Living and Dying
7. Rome Revisited
Interesting. So instead of a mile wide and an inch deep, Kelly is going for 7 small tunnels on topics inside the Empire.

[Victor Sonkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a gem. I did not expect a Very Short Introduction on the Roman Empire to tell me very much I didn't already know, so I took up this book mostly out of sheer curiosity, and boy, was I wrong. Kelly managed to write his text with dexterity, brio, in-depth forays into less known facets of the Roman world and facts that were little known to an informed amateur like myself and, I suspect, would be new for many a classicist. Among the things that he touches upon are the intricacies of provincial administration (the Roman Empire was remarkably undergoverned, the degree of independence of its provinces was unimaginable for any modern federal state), life expectancy and health issues of the general population, the ever-present historical dichotomy between the elite narratives (the bulk of the record available to us) and the unprivileged masses and their life; the various lessons derived from the Roman experience by subsequent empires, including the extremely divided attitude of the British (I assume the French, with their 'nos ancêtres les Gaulois' and their Romance language and customs were even more divided). Even on topics which I thought I knew pretty well, such as Mussolini's revamping of the Roman Imperial past and his abuse of history for political and urbanistic purposes, Kelly managed to say something new and surprising for me.

I can understand the disappointment of those who were looking for a very brief history of the Roman Empire, but, ma foi, it's better to read Wikipedia for this purpose.

My only personal qualm with the author is his misplaced grammar-Nazism: he avoids split infinitives like the plague, the results sometimes bordering on the incomprehensible, and chooses 'whom' over 'who' where the latter would have obviously been a better option.

[Linniegayl · Rating 1 out of 5]

I hoped this would be a "very short introduction" to the history of the Roman Empire. Instead, it was an odd series of commentaries by the author on various topics related to the Roman Empire. There were a few that were interesting, but for the most part I struggled to continue reading (and if not reading for a workshop I would have stopped at the first chapter).

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

The opening chapter is good, as is the one about Christians being thrown to the lions: "Treating Christians like criminals missed the central point of Christianity. It obscured its fundamental reliance on language, on the scriptures, on the Word" (94). But the other discussions are either too tangential or esoteric in subject matter. This really isn't an introduction to the Roman Empire as much as seven topics that the author finds interesting. Out of the seven, I enjoyed three.

There's no real narrative of how the empire became as such or how it fell (or survived in the east).

By the way, this series from Oxford UP is a great idea but the writing always seems a shade too academic.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an ok overview of the Roman Empire, possibly useful in a class where an overview of issues about the Roman Empire are important to know (ex: a class on the New Testament or Judaism in the Roman Empire). It was much less of a rush through history than it was a collection of essays on topics in the study of the Roman Empire.

[Justin Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Less of an introduction than a collection of superficial essays.

[Allison ☾ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like these A Very Short Intro books.

For someone who knows absolutely nothing about a subject, it's very informative.

[Simon · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you don't expect a chronological history of the Roman Empire, this book is an excellent introduction to the subject. The author describes how the Romans became the most powerful Empire in history and how their daily lives differed from ours. Most of the book is centered around the centuries 1 BC to 2 AD so it does not really cover the emergence of the Empire or the decline in detail.

[Leon McNair · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Roman Empire: A Very Short Introduction

Quite unlike its predecessor, The Roman Republic: A Very Short Introduction, the author decided not to introduce to the reader aspects of the growing Empire through its emperors as the main focus in a chronological fashion, amongst other characters of the Empire such as the wars. It is thus not simply a brief history, but an account of other less-known or less-often discussed topics and issues.

As well as including health issues and life expectancy problems; the inspiration that brought Mussolini to invade Ethiopia as though a second Carthage and a Fourth Punic War; and Hitler’s discovery of his love with Roman architecture that precipitated his Germania model with Albert Speer, aspects of what it means to be Roman in the Empire era, as a citizen living within Rome or outside, is touched. Christopher Kelly then later expands that definition into our modern interpretation via film and movie adaptions: how Hollywood views or dictates a Roman emperor, whether as heroic, villainous, or maddening, and we as the consumer absorb in that powerful but pre-formulated and artistic image and its Rome setting. The iconic structure of Hollywood’s Rome we are used to, Kelly claims, is in part a testament and creation of the very powerful and influential state of the Roman Empire: two-thousand years on, such grand and luxurious images of architectural feats with military might live on.

[Millie Swaffer · Rating 1 out of 5]

It is quite remarkable that the author managed to make the Roman Empire seem so boring. This was not a ‘very short introduction’ but a commentary of his own opinions regarding events that occurred. For someone who has no knowledge of this era (me) - it was far too complex and was not what I was expecting.

[Bookishgamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read to compliment my open university studies on the Roman Empire.

A very good and accessible overview of key information and history. I love these short introductions as they are good starting points on many subjects.

[JD Newick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting elements of social history but useless as an "Introduction". It only takes the history through to 192AD and never attempts a narrative overview of the era.

[Kerem · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great introduction to the vastly rich history of the Mediterranean superstate.

[Chase Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book brought ancient Rome to life in a way that was both vivid and educational. Kelly does a great job of demystifying the Roman Empire, showing both its grandeur and its brutal realities.

The chapter on Christianity (the second-to-last chapter) was the most meaningful to me as a pastor. It was fascinating to see the historical context in which the early church emerged. Hollywood often romanticizes ancient Rome, making us long for that era—but this book makes it clear that it was not a time we'd want to live in.

[Hatem Al moqri · Rating 3 out of 5]

coming from a person who is familiar with roman history from YouTube and online articles this is a good refresher and focuses on some parts that are usually ignored, but it is definitely not a good introduction more like a quick rant on different aspects of rome and assumes too much background information from fhe reader. i listened to it as audiobook so it felt like a breeze but I feel I wouldn't finish it if it was reading it myself.

[Bennett Rogers · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sometimes interesting, sometimes insightful, exclusively topical (as opposed to chronological), and irredeemably marred by the author's complete lack of sympathy with his subject. The only thing he dislikes more than 'The Roman Empire' is the Christian Church.

[Melissa Barbosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short but very informative. I really enjoyed reading it!

[Sean Rhoades · Rating 4 out of 5]

View of Christianity is from a Bart Ehrman/Dan Brown narrative which has been sufficiently disproved.

[Joel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t learn very much from this book, though the chapter on daily life in Rome was quite interesting

[Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

I agree with some of who have criticized this book for sometimes seeming like a collection of disparate essays but since I enjoyed each different approach to the Empire I gave it a high mark.

[Andrew Darr · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was not an introduction.

[Jessica Weida · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a very short introduction, so only the basic overview of the stretch and impact of the Empire rather than focusing on key players

[Samuel Eastlund · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is the best 'Very Short Introduction' I've read so far. It's a sweeping view of Roman society and politics, with clear quantitative and qualitative presentations of life for Romans both rich and poor. The growth of the Roman Empire is discussed with sufficient nuance, and the collusion of local rulers is given its own chapter. The book ends with a chapter on how the Roman Empire is presented in the 20th and 21st centuries. The writing is engaging and easy to get into.

[Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rather than a narrative history, Kelly provides an overview more focused on the meanings of the Roman Empire, for both its contemporaries and 21st century readers.

[Santaraksita · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best books written in the series "Very Short Introductions". For the lay author, such as me, who doesn't know much about western history and who has an interest in knowing about the pre-Christian imperial Roman society, culture and ideology, this is one of the best books available.
It describes the harsh bloodshed and conquest and the roman world view of their mission. After that, the structure of local society, that is a form of elite oligarchy is described where the wealthy local citizens of a conquered province supported the Roman rule to maintain their wealth and social position and often got Roman citizenship. Then it goes on to describe the view of a great civilization that was conquered, namely Greece, I.e. how they adjusted to imperialism and their reaction. The next chapter describes the origins of Christianity and the Roman response to the movement. Christians were punished along with other criminals by being slaughtered either by the gladiators or fed to the lions, while the people watched in glee. Christians faced accusations of cannibalism and had a suicidal tendency which made them prone to die, in view of their afterlife philosophy. The subsequent "martydom" quickly gained new converts to the religion and the cycle continued. It also describes the dependence of the early Christian dependence on the book. Due to this, when an emperor recognized that to wipe out the problem, he began seizing books from the churches, the community described it as the last "great persecution" despite no people being killed, as contrasted with the period before. Finally, after Christianity gained many new converts and became a powerful political community, emperor Constantine converted to Christianity and convened the Nicea council in which Nicene creed was declared. The next chapter deals with statistics such as nutrition, infant mortality, life expectancy, etc. The last chapter describes the portrayal of Roman empire in popular media, especially films and also deals with the interest of the British to study the empire for a study of successful imperialism and colonialism, which they thought would help consolidate their rule in India.
Such an introduction serves to familiarize the reader with Roman society in order to better understand the ancient Stoic philosophers such as Seneca, Musonius Rufus, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius,etc.
A better short introduction on this topic in my view, would not have been possible.

[Qian Ling · Rating 3 out of 5]

与其说是“简史”，不如说是主题式的导论——本书没有根据时间线来呈现罗马帝国的兴衰，而是划分成不同的主题，破解一些现代读者对古罗马的迷思，如古罗马行省的精英阶层如何看待帝国和确立自身的地位；帝国对基督徒的处理手段其实更趋于忽视而非压迫等。若对古罗马史已有一定程度的认识，阅读此书会更容易理解当中涉及的一些概念。

[Bojan Tunguz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Roman Empire is one of the most iconic, powerful, and influential empires in history. Its immediate influence on the course of European and Mediterranean history is self evident, but it’s the influence that it exerts on the politics and culture to this day that makes it remarkable, and almost unique, in the World history.

This short introduction is in a way a companion to the Roman Republic volume in this OUP series. Unlike that book, this one is decidedly less chronological in its treatment. It focuses more on certain themes that have been prevalent throughout the course of Roman Empire – the overwhelming and brutal power of the state, the rise of Christianity, the Gladiatorial games, the life in the Roman world, etc. In that regard this is not your typical history book. This approach has certain virtues, and after reading this book I am certainly appreciating certain aspects of the Roman Empire more than I did before. For instance, the sheer scale of the battle violence that the Roman troops engaged in was something entirely new to me. The number of battle deaths was not again “achieved” until the World War I. This is remarkable since, unlike WWI, the deaths in these battles were all hand-to-hand combat with “cold” weapons.

In the end, however, I feel that this “disjointed” approach to the historical narrative leaves the reader without the sense for the “big picture.” Many of the trends that this book covers did not develop irrespective of each other, but were rather intertwined in myriad ways. And this is something that only a chronologically written book can fully account for.