Due Date: Saturday, February 19^th, 2000, 5 p.m. in the Faculty mailboxes in Eliot.

Length: 1500 words.

Write on one of the following questions:

1. What role do the gods play in Livy's account of Roman identity?

2. In The Early History of Rome (Books 2 and 5), Livy gives an account of the development of Roman virtues under the early monarchies and the republic. How is the Augustus' Principate presented as embodying those virtues in texts like the Res Gestae and the Aeneid?

3. How do the political institutions and social traditions discussed by Beard and Crawford (Chapters 4-6), inform your reading of the Res Gestae?

4. In The Early History of Rome (p. 51), Livy gives two very different accounts of Romulus' end: "A few voices began to proclaim Romulus' divinity; the cry was taken up, and at last every man present hailed him as a god and son of god, and prayed to him to be for ever gracious and to protect his children. However, even on this great occasion there were, I believe, a few dissentients who secretly maintained that the king had been torn to pieces by senators." Using this passage as a point of departure, analyze the role and effects of omens, sacrifices, or rituals in the texts of Suetonius or Virgil.

5. Discuss Camilla's role in Book 11 of the Aeneid. In what ways do her actions and fate relate to the central themes of the poem?

6. How does your close reading of the Aeneid, Book 12, Lines 1100-1119 influence your understanding of the poem as a whole?

7. In consultation with your conference leader, write on a topic of your own devising.