Exemplary Ethics in Ancient Rome

Ground-breaking study revealing the thrill and moral power of the ancient Roman story-world and its ancestral tales of bloody heroism.

Rebecca Langlands (Author)

9781108971645, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 17 December 2020

380 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 2 cm, 0.511 kg

'… [This] exemplary book enriches the study of Roman exempla and of exemplarity as such. It opens many paths of productive debate, and will provide a trove of ideas and prompts to further research.' Matthew Roller, Bryn Mawr Classical Review

This ground-breaking study conveys the thrill and moral power of the ancient Roman story-world and its ancestral tales of bloody heroism. Its account of 'exemplary ethics' explores how and what Romans learnt from these moral exempla, arguing that they disseminated widely not only core values such as courage and loyalty, but also key ethical debates and controversies which are still relevant for us today. Exemplary ethics encouraged controversial thinking, creative imitation, and a critical perspective on moral issues, and it plays an important role in Western philosophical thought. The model of exemplary ethics developed here is based on a comprehensive survey of Latin literature, and its innovative approach also synthesizes methodologies from disciplines such as contemporary philosophy, educational theory, and cultural memory studies. It offers a new and robust framework for the study of Roman exempla that will also be valuable for the study of moral exempla in other settings.

Introduction
1. Roman values and the archetypal exemplum
2. The special capacity of exemplary stories
3. Exploitation, participation and the social function exempla
4. The experience of learning from exempla
5. Multiplicity, breadth, diversity and situational sensitivity in exemplary ethics
6. Working consensus around Roman exempla
7. Indeterminacy of exempla: interpretation, motivation and improvisation
8. Sites of exemplarity: referentiality, memory, orality
9. The dynamics of cultural memory: forgetting, rupture, contestation
10. Changing sites of exemplarity: two case studies
11. Diachronic overview of the exemplary terrain
12. Controversial thinking through exempla
13. Philosophical and literary adventures in the exemplary terrain
Conclusion.

Subject Areas: Philosophy & theory of education [JNA], Ethics & moral philosophy [HPQ], Western philosophy: Ancient, to c 500 [HPCA], Ancient history: to c 500 CE [HBLA], Literature: history & criticism [DS]