Romans

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“Literature gives voice to issues

and themes that transcend time

and place.”

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What are these words in Spanish?

Imperialism Empire ColonialismColonyProconsulProcurator

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Where do they come from?

Rome!

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What else are they associated with?

Power!

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Empire

Supreme power in governing

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Imperialism

The policy of extending the ruleOf a country/empire over foreign countries.

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Colonialism

Set of unequal relations between one country over a dependent nation

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“Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts.”

― Patrick Rothfuss, The Name of the Wind

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An important theme in Julius Caesar is the relationship between words and power.

The ability to make things happen by speech alone is a powerful type of authority.

Early in the play, it is established that Caesar has this type of absolute authority.

{Divide and Rule: The Legacy of Roman Imperialism

“When Caesar says ‘Do this,’ it is performed,” (I.ii.10)

After Caesar died Rome continued to prosper and expand for several centuries with the Empire being ruled by an emperor, who had complete control over the people, with power no longer in the hands of the people.

Background History

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They willingly and freely incorporated newly conquered people into their own society.

Freely giving citizenship to outsiders in order to Romanize them

The Romans were unique among ancient people.

{Roman approaches towards conquering and administrating territories and individuals provided the blueprint, for later European expansion and rule.The ancient Romans

cast a long shadow over the peoples of

Europe.

Gaining and maintaining power by breaking up larger concentrations of power into chunks that individually have less power than the one implementing the strategy.

Divide and Rule:

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• Rome is often seen as “rescuing” savage peoples to its own superior level of culture

Or

• Ruthlessly destroying indigenous cultures and reshaping them in its own tyrannical image.

{Cassius (I.ii. 136-138)

Why, man, he doth bestride the narrow worldLike a Colossus, and we petty menWalk under his huge legs and peep about

{It crossed the Oceans!

How great was his legacy?

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• Spanish and Portuguese used same techniques of assimilation.

• Divide and Rule: manipulated the political situation between the indigenous tribes.

• Replaced religious structures with those of Catholicism.

New World

Costa Rica - Matambú Nearly 1,000 years ago, the

Chorotegas were one of the first ethnic groups in Mexico that decided to migrate southwards to the Nicoyan Peninsula.

According to legend, the Chorotegas were drawn to the Nicoyan Peninsula because the Gods told them to “live near to a fresh-water sea that has an island with two tall peaks”.

They found this location when they arrived to the Island of Ometepe and the Nicoyan Peninsula.

The arrival of the Spanish changed the balance of this ethnic group.

According to one theory, the Spanish took the majority of male Chorotegas to Peru as labourers. Few women and children were left behind.

This has been argued as the start of the assimilation of the Chorotega tribe and the loss of language / culture.

According to a study in 2003, the Catholic religion and education also contributed to the loss of language /culture.Assimilation

In 1977, Costa Rican law created 22 reservations

Acknowledging the existence of eight indigenous ethnicities (Chorotega, Bribri, Cabecar, Huetar, Guaymi, Maleku/ Guatuso, and Brunca).

The State created reservations in sites inhabited by self-identified indigenous peoples and in places described by historical writings as having been inhabited by indigenous peoples at the time of conquest.

Reservations

According to one theorist, the purpose motivating the creation of reservations was:

"to convert the Native Americans into more standard peasants, and to ignore the problem of helping them to find ways to retain their lifestyle" (Murillo cited in Adams 1991: 203).

Modern day assimilation?

According to Costa Rica's National Commission on Indigenous Affairs, known as CONAl (Comision Nacional de Asuntos Indigenas), the reservations were created with the express goal :

”to elevate their conditions of life and to integrate the aboriginal communities to the development process" (Matamoros Carvajal 1990: 69)

CONAI

Some authors argue that the inhabitants of “Matambu” are no longer “indigenous enough” and that other tribes are more ‘legitimate’

Some academics argue that this has left inhabitants feeling “empty or undefined”, or as one community member noted “"sin el santo ni la limosna”

Limbo

1. From what you have seen and experienced, does today’s society still reflect elements of Roman rule, (divide and rule, assimilation, colonialism, empire, imperialism). Was the influence of Roman rulers similar to “Colossus” as Shakespeare states? 2. “Men at some time are masters of their fates. The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars. But in ourselves” Examine the quote - Are the inhabitants of Matambu* powerless as to their fate? Is it inevitable that minority cultures will indeed get smaller or even disappear? 3. Do you feel connected to the heritage of Costa Rica?   *For those students not attending the field trip, please investigate the general situation of the Costa Rican indigenous population.

Collect evidence! photographs! talk to residents! record

feelings!

Assignment – In pairs or individually: