Caesar gay
I'll neglect the fact that you compared bestiality to homosexuality and address the other issues.
As others have pointed out, homosexuality was generally looked down upon by the Romans, though many Greeks did practice it unabashedly. The Jews considered homosexuality, along with sexual relations with close family, a sin. And this was well before the 19th century.There is a distinction to make between homosexuality as we believe of it, that is to say, a specific lifestyle in which one pursues partners of the same gender and looks for long term relationships, and merely sexual relations, which is what the ancients, including the Jews, were concerned about.
Very not many people (I'm inserting this qualifier so that examples such as Sappho, Sulla, Alexander, and others who seems to fit a modern conception of a homosexual or bisexual) seemed to care or even think about the passionate and romantic relationships that develop between hetero- or homosexuals, and only interest
Was Julius Caesar bisexual? Was he epileptic?
OK, about the epilepsy:
The conspiracy nuts have picked up on this issue, some claiming that Caesar willfully allowed himself to be assassinated, as he knew that his epilepsy was going to get him soon anyway, either by killing him or turning him into a slobbering fool, and he figured that being assassinated in the senate was a more statesmanlike way to go. However, I don’t think there’s any actual evidence for this.
Anyway, the supposed epilepsy is mentioned by several sources, most importantly Plutarch. It’s worth noting that Plutarch actually seems to downplay the whole issue, claiming that it did not hinder Caesar in the field, but rather made him hardier:
“For he was a spare man, had a soft and white skin, was distempered in the head and subject to an epilepsy, which, it is said, first seized him at Corduba. But he did not craft the weakness of his constitution a pretext for his ease, but rather used war as the best physic against his indispositions; whilst, by indefatigable journeys, coarse diet, frequent lodging in the field, and continual laborious use, he struggled with his diseases and fortified his bo
Caesar's Legion & Homosexuality
Major Knight: Oddly enough, Legion's a little more forgiving about... friendships.
Cass: Guess you've got a Legion outlook on things. [Confirmed Bachelor speech check]
Veronica:I hear they mount their soldiers as much as they mount their women, so maybe they did keep a minuscule something from the Empire.
This impression, though widespread, is contradicted by an actual direct witness to Legion life:
Jimmy: A Centurion there chose me as his tent servant. He was handsome, and gentle, most of the time. Said it was our private, and he'd protect me. Gave me little gifts, stupid things. But Caesar punishes homosexuality with death, and we nearly got caught, and there were suspicions. So when he took me out into the desert... Well, I knew he was going to get rid of me.
Personally I always launch this a little disappointing. It poses no challenges to the player's latest liberal worldview. It fits a little too easily into our moral preconceptions (Legion = h
In honour of LGBTQIA+ history month, Ancient History alumni Ollie Burns takes a closer look at the social, political, and cultural implications of homosexuality in ancient Rome.
Trigger Warning: sexual violence, homophobia, paedophilia, nudity.
The presentation and perception of homosexuality in the Roman world was vastly alternative than how it is today, and gives us an example of how homosexuality has been indelibly linked with communications of power and authority in antiquity. The Latin language has no word for either heterosexual or gay, and instead partners in a sexual relationship would be presented as either active, synonymous with masculinity, or passive and therefore, feminine, regardless of the gender of the individuals involved. Freeborn male Romans had the civil liberty to do as they pleased when it came to sexual activity, and as such, the idea of a Roman male engaging in homosexual sex was in no way controversial or taboo to the Romans, as extended as it fell within certain parameters.
Rome was a deeply militarised state, with conquest and dominance deeply ingrained as desirable masculine traits. As a outcome of this, men were free to engage in
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