Daily Life In Ancient Rome

1. Religion

1.1. Romans adopted Roman gods along with gods from other cultures. They believed that the gods controlled everyday life. They built many temples and shrines and made animal sacrifices because they wanted to please the gods. They held festivals or holy days throughout the year to please certain gods. Family life was also affected. Most homes had a altar to worship and pray. The Romans also came to worship their emperors as gods. Most forms of worship brought by foreigners to Rome were accepted, as long as they did not produce disloyalty to the emperor.

2. Family Life

2.1. Family life in Rome was controlled by the paterfamilias or head of the household. A Roman father's word was law in the household, even fully grown sons or daughters had to obey. The father was expected to provide for the family, but the poor's wives had to work sometimes too. The rich fathers bought and trained the family's slaves. Babies who were weak were made slaves or left to die. At nine days old and when a boy is 14-18, they had ceremonies. When he is 14-18, his ceremony marks the end of childhood. Women had no ceremonies, and were adults when they married. Romans married in temples i wearing togas.

3. Food And Drink

3.1. Only the rich had kitchens, so the poor depended on fast food places called thermopolia to get their hot and cold foods. Even the rich sometimes ate here because of fast service. Favorite Roman foods are bread, beans, spices, a few vegetables, cheeses, and meats. Favorite drinks included plain water and hot water with herbs and honey. For breakfast, Romans usually ate a piece of bread and a bowl of beans or porridge. Lunch was just cheese, bread, and some olives or celery. Poor dinners were chunks of fish along with some asparagus and a fig for dessert. The rich had fancy meals and the market would sell them anything they could afford. These meals might include mice cooked in honey, roasted parrots stuffed with dates, salted jellyfish, and snails dipped in milk. Slaves usually shopped for their masters at the market.

4. Housing

4.1. The housing In Rome is as expected. The rich lived in large, open homes made of stone and marble while the poor lived in tiny dark apartments. The large homes had many rooms, the most fancy being the dining room decorated with paintings and other art. They also hosted dinner parties. The poor were nearby, living in the crowded apartment atop their stores. With no proper kitchen, they used small portable grills to cook foods which caused a fire hazard in their old wooden homes. Due o these conditions, sickness also spread extremely fast through these homes.

5. Recreation

5.1. In Rome there were different forms of recreation. The rich enjoyed plays in theaters and musical performances in one another’s homes. The rich and poor went to the baths to bathe, swim, exercise, and enjoy a steam bath or a massage. The baths also had gardens, libraries, shops, and art galleries. The Colosseum is where anyone could go to watch gladiators fight other people and animals to the death, usually slaves. At the circus maximus, 200,000 spectators, (anyone) could watch chariot races.

6. Country Life

6.1. 90% of the Roman empire's population lived in the country. The wealthy had large country homes where they could go the check on their farm and relax. Slaves worked on the farms to provide: grain for bread, grapes for wine, olives for oil, goats and sheep provided cheese, and their skins and wool were made into clothing. Cattle and pigs were raised for their meat. Farmers also kept bees for making honey. They provided this for Rome and other cities. Many country citizens were not poor, but they lived in only huts and farmed to make a living.

7. Daily Life In Ancient Rome

7.1. Nearly 1 million people lived in the city of Ancient Rome in mostly in tiny apartments on the dirty streets. The forum, in the center of Rome was a place where wealthy shopped with slaves and people even from various countries wandered. Goods from all over the world came here. The Romans spent a lot of money on decor and fancy things. The poor were the bulk of the population. To keep them from getting mad about their lives, they held gladiatorial and sport competitions and gave away free food to keep them happy. The most people lived in the country side and farmed, but the many cities of Rome were crowded.

8. Law And Order

8.1. The Romans always believed in a source of law. In the republic, the senate and assemblies were the source of law, but in the empire the ultimate source for law was the emperor. The senate still met and senators held a high status, but not much power. Because crime was so common in Rome, the punishments were severe. Some streets were so dangerous, especially lower class roads, that they were closed at night. People disguised their wealth to stay safe. Anyone could charge someone of a crime and a jury of citizens decided the case. However, even though they wanted it to be equal, the law usually punished the poor more than the rich, sometimes it even included torture.

9. Education

9.1. Education in Rome education depended almost fully on the family you were in. Many of the poor children worked instead of schooling and learned trades like leather and metalworking. In richer families, they were tutored by slaves till 6 then the boys were sent off to school. School started very early and the students had to get their own breakfast from markets on their way to school carrying their bag if supplies. At school they used pens called styluses to write on wax covered boards. School was over at 2 or 3 in the afternoon. Roman boys learned Latin, Greek, math, science, literature, music, and public speaking. They usually became soldiers, doctors, politicians, or lawyers. Girls might become dentists, real estate agents, or tutors with this knowledge. Girls might become dentists, real estate agents, or tutors. Some female slaves or freed women could become midwives. Upper class boys were schooled till 12 or 13. The richest family's boys went till 16 and could then manage property of their own.