Role Models in the Roman World: Identity and Assimilation

This book broadens the horizon of the longstanding scholarly interest in role models in several ways, looking beyond the more familiar famous heroes or the paternal figures, both mythological and historical, that gave inspiration to later leaders and authors. From the adoption of specific aspects of a favored role model, to the creation of new visual languages for different social groups, to the deliberate counter of common models, this collection demonstrates the importance of exemplary figures in inspiring imitation and assimilation in the creation of new identities.Featuring world-renowned scholars and essays from a broad range of fields, including literature and art and historiography,
Role Models in the Roman World
is a ground-breaking collection at the cusp of the newest scholarship of the classical world. It offers an inter disciplinary examination of the use of role models in articulating social and cultural identities in the Roman world.