The King Of Marcus Aurelius - 1322 Words

The son of Marcus Aurelius,’ Commodus Antoninus, came to power in the wake of his father’s death in March of 180 CE. From the death of Marcus Aurelius came the end to the Five Good Emperors. Commodus’ reign lasted from 180 to 192 CE and he described it as a â€Å"golden age.† (cite) However, this was far from the truth. Commodus succumbed to the lure of self-indulgence and become a megalomaniac. Along with those two flaws, he also held deep antagonism against the Senate. (cite) Arguably, the two most important aspects of his reign was: his identification with the demigod Hercules and his participation in gladiatorial games. Commodus thought himself as a reborn Hercules, he appeared in public places donned in a lion hide cloak. It was a reference to the Nemean Lion that Hercules fought in his twelve labors.(cite) And even in the arena, a horror to the senate but possibly to the delight of the plebs, he wore this fighting. But there was a belief held strong ly by the elite that Roman Emperors were not supposed to do this. But his love for the games was so immense he partook in them regardless of their beliefs. Commodus participated in the gladiatorial games for his own self-indulgence and fantasies about being Hercules. To Roman elite, seeing the Emperor do this was appalling because gladiators were not supposed to be high class; they were slaves or prisoners, and this is reason the Roman elite disliked his behavior. Senators were forced to witness a number of these games. ItShow MoreRelatedThe Philosopher King2423 Words   |  10 Pagesone we’ll need? (Plato 203). The image of the philosopher king was thoroughly described in Plato’s Republic, but the perfect ruler or philosopher king has transformed throughout history and are influenced by historical events. First, the description of a perfect ruler in an ideal society in Plato’s Republic will be the first comparison and the basis of a philosopher king. Second, M arcus Aurelius, who was described as the first philosopher king wrote Meditations and it expresses his own thoughts andRead MoreWalt Disneys The Lion King Essay1031 Words   |  5 PagesThere is no doubt that todays entertainment has lost most of its touch with the more classical influences of its predecessors. However, in mid-1994, Walt Disney Pictures released what could arguably be the best animated feature of all time in The Lion King. With a moral base unlike most of the movies released at the time, TLK placed a childrens facade on a very serious story of responsibility and revenge. However, this theme is one of the oldest in history, and it is not the least apparent in one ofRead MoreCommodus : The Emperor Of Rome728 Words   |  3 Pages Commodus was bred to live like a king but wasn t born to rule as one. He was the most questionable emperors in the history of Rome. His rise to power is and always will be deliberated. The young emperor inherited the power from his father, Marcus Aurelius, the former emperor of Rome. Commodus was the Roman Emperor from 180 to 192. He also ruled as co-emperor with his father Marcus Aurelius from 177 until his father s death in 180. Lucius Aurelius Commodus was born on the 31 of August AD 161Read MoreEssay Marcus Aurelius and Stoic Philosophy1270 Words   |  6 PagesMarcus Aurelius and Stoic Philosophy Stoicism is a belief that the universe, despite its appearances, is completely rational and guided by fate. Within it, individuals can, by conforming themselves to divine reason, find their proper place, learn to accept whatever happens with a strong and tranquil mind, and fulfill their obligations to society. These beliefs are the heart of Stoicism, a philosophy that originated in Athens during the 3rd century BC. Stoicism can be divided intoRead MoreThe Black, The White, And The Grey1201 Words   |  5 PagesThe Black, the White, the Grey: (A Discussion about the qualities of a good leader in relation to Machiavelli, Plato, and Marcus Aurelius) In modern politics so much of the black and white has blended into grey. It has become increasingly more difficult to define a good leader. Just looking at the Presidential candidates for the upcoming election is making me sick. Theodore Roosevelt, one of the truly good leaders of our country, says, â€Å"People ask the difference between a leader and a boss. The leaderRead MoreEssay on Commodus1453 Words   |  6 Pagesthe worse emperor in the history of Rome. The fact that his father, Marcus Aurelius, was a popular and successful ruler may have raised the precedent that Commodus had to live up to. But for whatever reason, Commodus proved a disconnected and self indulgent leader. At the age of five Commodus was named Caesar, and at the age of seventeen he became co-Augustus with his father. He spent his childhood accompanying Marcus Aurelius on political campaigns, and learned a lot on how to run an empire. HoweverRead MoreEssay on Summer Reading756 Words   |  4 Pagesburn the longest, but everything failed, it was with their hard work and persistence they finally found a material that burned for 200 hours, lighting up New York at the hours of darkness, eventually the whole world. The same as for what Martin Luther King and other civil rights activists did, with their passion to gain equality they put themselves out and fought for not only their rights but everyone else, protesting day by day even though they were treated with hostility, little by little their hardRead MoreReflecting on Why the Roman Empire was Great Essay838 Words   |  4 Pageschange. It could be assumed that is the leadership that passed through Roman history that made it great but a greater question is are these leaders great through pedigree and lineage or was it by accountability. Rome was a land that started with kings moved to a senate and ended with emperors. Emperors could gain power through war or money and family legacy. This was seen throughout Roman history, however the successfulness of such emperors was just as fluid as how they gained power. There isRead MoreSpecial Objects Report Of Trajan s Column Essay959 Words   |  4 Pagesnotable style characteristics could include its continuous helical frieze. Within the frieze are the reliefs that tell the narrative of the wars against the the Dacians. The design of Trajan’s Column can easily be compared to that of the Column of Marcus Aurelius, which has many identical aspects. The structure’s most remarkable structural features can be classified as either Roman or Dacian, depending on what cultural influences were apparently dominant for the structure (Thill, Elizabeth 28). To beRead More Philosophies of Meditations by Marcus Aurelius Essay examples2608 Words   |  11 Pages Marcus Aurelius Even today, Meditations by Marcus Aurelius is read by every class from kings to common people. The book is a universal classic, meaning it can be related to at any time, by anyone. The philosophies included in his book have spanned the centuries, and Meditations remains to be one of the most influential books ever written. Marcus Aurelius was born on April 20, 121 AD into a family of royalty. His uncle and adoptive father, Antoninus Pius, was the emperor of Rome. Aurelius,