 and stay at home. None of the women really had their own identities or an array of personal choices put before them. There are always some exceptions and there must have been women considered very radical in their time. Women were always overshadowed by the men in their lives because Rome was a very patriarchal society, built on a peasant culture and on the old customs of mos maiorum.(47) Quoting Ennius, Cicero said, "the strength of Rome is founded on her ancient customs as much as on the strength of her sons."(48) Roman women might have had it better than Athenian women, but that's not saying much. Rich or poor, most died young. One can only hope they had a few pleasures that were never documented by the men who wrote about them. Some did get involved in the rites of Bacchus(49) and probably did enjoy themselves a great deal for short periods of time, before they were caught.
We will never know what the women of ancient Rome thought about their inferior social position or what they thought about the many layers of separation that existed between themselves and Roman men. The ancient Roman world was a very patriarchal culture, with men holding all the positions of power. Women and children really did not have many rights. In reality, life must have been difficult for the majority of people in Rome considering all the years of war and conquer. Life wasn't very easy for anyone. Although the Romans were not pioneers in social equality, the civilization had a great influence on both men and women who came later. They were building an empire and as the legendary H.I. Marrou stated in his book, A History of Education in Antiquity:
If Greek civilization in its turn had remained the jealously guarded preserve of a few Aegean cities, it too would have disappeared long ago, without renewing, as it has, the face of the earth. And the fact that it has fulfilled its destiny is largely due to Rome. Rome's historic function was to complete the work begun by Alexander, and plant Hellenistic civilization from the Sahara to the lochs of Scotland, from the Euphrates to the Atlantic; and to give it such deep roots that it could withstand the storms of Teuton and Slav invasions, and the Arab invasion, if not that of the Turks. It is this profound labor, ensuring the renaissances of the future that constitutes Rome's real honor and imperishable glory.(50)
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