Laughing at domestica facta

Identity construction in mid-Republican Rome through the lens of the togata

Giuseppe Eugenio Rallo

• Publisher: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht
• Year: 2024
• Print ISBN: 9783949189968
• eBook ISBN: 9783949189975
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: Literary Criticism History & Theory
• Index: Literature

In this monograph, the author embarks on a captivating journey to shed fresh light on the togata, a mid-Republican theatrical genre which survives only in fragments. The book seeks to answer pressing questions surrounding the togata's significance in identity construction during the middle Republic from a literary and cultural perspective. Delving deep into the fragmentary textual remains of the togata, the book explores how the Roman elite fashioned their identity. The author challenges the notion of monolithic identity construction, and explores the diverse forms of identity within the togata, offering a new perspective on the subject. This study thus positions the togata as a vital source for discerning the characteristics and beliefs by which the Romans distinguished themselves and their culture from others. By examining how Romans perceived themselves, their ideas about different social groups, and their literary and cultural ties to earlier traditions, this book aims to transform our understanding of the togata's role in Roman drama.

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Copyright
• Table of Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Abstract
• A preliminary note for the reader
• Introduction
• Chapter I – Authors, term, elements
• Chapter II – Female and male characters
• Chapter III – Ancient reception and lexicon
• Conclusions
• Appendix
• Quotation of the fragments of the togata in ancient sources
• Bibliography
• Indices