1. The Roman Way of Life Lesson 1 of Chapter 12

2. The Empire’s Chief City Rome
Carefully planned city with over 1 million people within its population
Wealthy Romans lived in large homes on the city’s hills
Most Romans lived in crowded, noisy, dirty neighborhoods
To gain the support of Rome’s poor, political leaders offered “bread and circuses”

3. The Roman Family When Rome was a republic, large families were common
The father held all the power within the family
In later times, fathers lost some of that power, families had fewer children and Roman were more likely to get divorced and remarry
Wealthy Roman children were given an education at home
As they grew, only boys received further education outside of the home. Poor families received no education

4. Science and Art
In science, Romans were influenced by a Greek named Galen, he emphasized the importance of anatomy
Ptolemy was an important Roman scientist. He focused on the motion of planets and stars
Ptolemy
Galen

5. Engineering Skills
The Roman’s built roads that allowed the soldiers to travel quickly to different regions
Merchants used the roads for travel and trade
The engineers also built aqueducts which carried water over long distances to people within the cities

6. Art and Architecture Greek sculptures differed from Roman sculptures
While Greek statues were meant to reflect perfection in people, Roman statues showed flaws such as wrinkles and warts
Vaulted ceilings were designed by placing arches next to each other in rows
The use of volcanic ash, lime and water made for an extremely sturdy mixture used on many ancient buildings that still stand today.

7. Literature
Romans respected writers and philosophers. They were continuously searching for the meaning of life
The Romans honored their gods, but, also wrote comedies about them.
They were not afraid to poke fun at the gods, political leaders and heroes

8. Theatre and Language
One of the most popular past times in Rome was attending plays
All roles were played by men. Women were only permitted to play as mimes
Latin became the language for government, trade and learning until about a.d. 1500