Political Character of the Classical Roman Republic ThisviewwouldhavesurprisedPlautus,whoreflectstheconceptionthat
public office was anhonorbestowed by the vote (suffragium)ofthepeople
(Bacch.).Itisentirelyinconsonancewiththisthatitwasthecustomfor
aconsuldesignatetoascendtheRostraandmakeaspeechofthankstothe
people (Plut.,Aem.Paul. , ).The standard view rests on a series of pre-
sumptions, in the light of which the evidence can be read; some of these
presumptionshavealreadybeendisprovedinrecentwork.Asforclientelaand
dependence,therewillbemoretosaylater(texttonn.–).However,
asregardsfamiliaeandgentesnoone,ofcourse,willdisputetheimportance
ofdescentinRomanpubliclife.ItisPolybiushimself(,–)whorecords
boththedisplayofancestraldeathmasks(imagines)atthefuneralsofpromi-
nent Romans, and the custom by which a son or other relative mounted
theRostraanddiscoursedtothepeopleonthevirtuesofthedeceased,and
thenofhisancestors,beginningwiththemostancient.But,hereagain,we
haveinformationandpersuasionaddressedtothepeople,publicly,fromthe
Rostra.ToCatoitwasacustomwhichbelongedinthepastthatafterdinner,
inprivate,thedinershadsung‘‘thepraisesandvirtuesoffamousmen.’’^37 In
hisowndayitwasinpublic,intheForum,andbythemediumoforatory
thattheservicesofoffice-holdingfamilieswererehearsedrepeatedlybefore
thepeopleatlarge.
Since the occasion of a prominent funeral had been further under-
linedbyrecommendationsofamoreconcretekind,intheformoffuneral
games,firstwithgladiatorialdisplays,thenwiththeatricalperformancesas
well.Thescaleoftheshowsgrewrapidly,fromthreepairsofgladiatorsper-
formingintheForumBoariumin,totwenty-twoin,twenty-five
in , and sixty in , accompanied bya distribution of sacrificial meat
(visceratio)andadinnerintheForum.Inamerethirty-sevenpairsfought
inthefuneralgamesforFlamininus,butaccompaniedbyadistributionof
sacrificial meat, a banquet, and theatrical shows for fourdays.^38 We know
from Polybius, speaking of the gladiatorial show which accompanied the
funeralofAemiliusPaullus,thatagoodperformancecostsomethirtytal-
ents,or,HS(,,–).Onceagain,theseweredisplaysdirected
tothepublicatlarge.
amongtheelectorate,sincetheirdecisionswereguidedbynumerousbondagesandties,
from family relations and friendships to factors such asclientelaand bribery.’’ Earliercri-
tiques of this vieware P. A. Brunt,Social Conflicts in the Roman Republic();Crawford
(n.),–;K.Hopkins,Death and Renewal(),–.
. Cic.,Tusc.Disp.,,;Peter,HRR,Origines,F..
. SeeG.Ville,La gladiature en Occident des origines à la mort de Domitien(),–.