Plebeians and Patricians:
The citizens of Rome were divided into two major groups; the Plebeians and the Patricians. The Plebeians were the lower class, consisting of farmers and commoners, with little-to-no say in Roman's political decisions. The Patricians were the upper class, being very wealthy. They were made up of politicians and practically anybody wealthy; they also had a much greater say in what happened with the government.
The Plebeians were also made-up of slaves, and even sometimes well-paid tradesmen. Most Romans however, were Plebeians. The Patricians were the wealthier class of Ancient Rome, however the Plebeians weren't necessarily 'poor' or 'starving.' Many Plebeians were rather wealthy, and could almost be mistaken for Patricians.
The Patricians were made of politicians, who were back-then know as 'Senators.' Rome hated Emperors so much that they forbade them. Instead, the replaced them with up to a hundred individual Senators to make most of the Roman laws. They were also made of men who owned large quantities of land, money and power.
The similarities between both classes were almost as common as they were different. All families worked by placing the oldest male in-charge. This male could be the uncle, father or even the grandfather, and he made all family-related decisions. The women however, had absolutely no say and did nothing outside of the house; their job was to cook, clean and produce children to their husbands. Everyone in the one family lived in the same house.
Other similarities included religions and religious festivals or rituals, they both spoke the same language; Latin, they both used slaves if it was in their budget, and both could become a Roman citizen.
Some other notable differences between the two included their general hygiene, Patricians being much more clean. Their social life was also completely different. A Plebeian, no matter how wealthy, was in no way able to meet up or event talk to a Patrician. Until 445BC, almost 60 years since the Roma Republic was formed, they weren't even allowed to marry under any conditions.
Slaves:
Ancient Rome evolved around Slaves when it came to entertainment, cooking, cleaning and even sexual relationships. There were three different types of Roman slaves; there were the gladiators, men who were forced into an arena with members of the Roman army, animals, or other gladiators with hardly any armour or weapons. There were also the prostitutes, who were women who sold their bodies to men as a living. Finally, there were the general house-slaves, who would be forced to do any cooking or cleaning within a Roman citizens' house. All of these slaves or their children were unable to become a Roman citizen because of their 'filthy blood.'
Gladiators were commonly considered the worst-off of all slaves. They were slaughtered and murdered by vicious animals and people for the entertainment of other Romans. The Gladiators could however, become very famous and wealthy were they to win many battles. These games were very expensive to run, so battles were limited to a few each year.
Many prostitutes would have come from broken or perished families. Prostitutes were treated like animals, and once they had been sold to a man were forced to do whatever he commanded. Prostitutes would eventually die young due to an unnecessary death not unlike the gladiators; for the entertainment of other's. STD's and abuse were the cause for his.
Household slaves, despite having to obey every command, were better-off than any slave. Generally, they would live much longer, healthier lives. They would live with their owners and have to obey every command, no matter how severe. It was rather uncommon for Romans to mistreat their household slaves to the extent of being anywhere near the way gladiators and prostitutes were treated.
The citizens of Rome were divided into two major groups; the Plebeians and the Patricians. The Plebeians were the lower class, consisting of farmers and commoners, with little-to-no say in Roman's political decisions. The Patricians were the upper class, being very wealthy. They were made up of politicians and practically anybody wealthy; they also had a much greater say in what happened with the government.
The Plebeians were also made-up of slaves, and even sometimes well-paid tradesmen. Most Romans however, were Plebeians. The Patricians were the wealthier class of Ancient Rome, however the Plebeians weren't necessarily 'poor' or 'starving.' Many Plebeians were rather wealthy, and could almost be mistaken for Patricians.
The Patricians were made of politicians, who were back-then know as 'Senators.' Rome hated Emperors so much that they forbade them. Instead, the replaced them with up to a hundred individual Senators to make most of the Roman laws. They were also made of men who owned large quantities of land, money and power.
The similarities between both classes were almost as common as they were different. All families worked by placing the oldest male in-charge. This male could be the uncle, father or even the grandfather, and he made all family-related decisions. The women however, had absolutely no say and did nothing outside of the house; their job was to cook, clean and produce children to their husbands. Everyone in the one family lived in the same house.
Other similarities included religions and religious festivals or rituals, they both spoke the same language; Latin, they both used slaves if it was in their budget, and both could become a Roman citizen.
Some other notable differences between the two included their general hygiene, Patricians being much more clean. Their social life was also completely different. A Plebeian, no matter how wealthy, was in no way able to meet up or event talk to a Patrician. Until 445BC, almost 60 years since the Roma Republic was formed, they weren't even allowed to marry under any conditions.
Slaves:
Ancient Rome evolved around Slaves when it came to entertainment, cooking, cleaning and even sexual relationships. There were three different types of Roman slaves; there were the gladiators, men who were forced into an arena with members of the Roman army, animals, or other gladiators with hardly any armour or weapons. There were also the prostitutes, who were women who sold their bodies to men as a living. Finally, there were the general house-slaves, who would be forced to do any cooking or cleaning within a Roman citizens' house. All of these slaves or their children were unable to become a Roman citizen because of their 'filthy blood.'
Gladiators were commonly considered the worst-off of all slaves. They were slaughtered and murdered by vicious animals and people for the entertainment of other Romans. The Gladiators could however, become very famous and wealthy were they to win many battles. These games were very expensive to run, so battles were limited to a few each year.
Many prostitutes would have come from broken or perished families. Prostitutes were treated like animals, and once they had been sold to a man were forced to do whatever he commanded. Prostitutes would eventually die young due to an unnecessary death not unlike the gladiators; for the entertainment of other's. STD's and abuse were the cause for his.
Household slaves, despite having to obey every command, were better-off than any slave. Generally, they would live much longer, healthier lives. They would live with their owners and have to obey every command, no matter how severe. It was rather uncommon for Romans to mistreat their household slaves to the extent of being anywhere near the way gladiators and prostitutes were treated.