This fascinating cultural and intellectual history focuses on education as practiced by the imperial age Romans, looking at what they considered the value of education and its effect on children. W. Martin Bloomer details the processes, exercises, claims, and contexts of liberal education from the late first century BCE to the third century CE--the epoch of rhetorical education. He examines the adaptation of Greek institutions, methods, and texts by the Romans, and traces the Romans' own history of education. Bloomer argues that while Rome's enduring educational legacy includes the seven liberal arts and a canon of school texts, its practice of competitive displays of reading, writing, and reciting were intended to instill in the young social as well as intellectual ideas.

About the Author
W. Martin Bloomer is Associate Professor of Classics at Notre Dame University. His books include Valerius Maximus and the Rhetoric of the New Nobility and The Contest of Language.

Reviews
"Bloomer has composed a compelling, insightful work... [This] text deserves a wide audience." -- Zara M. Torlone, Miami University Bryn Mawr Classical Review (BMCR) "A clever and sophisticated reading of [Roman] society." -- Tim Whitmarsh London Review Of Books "Adventurous... An entertaining reconstruction of the difficulties encountered by early schools of rhetoric at Rome." -- Teresa Morgan, Oriel College, Oxford Jrnl Of Roman Stds/Jrnl Of Hellenic Stds



Book Information
ISBN 9780520296183
Author W. Martin Bloomer
Format Paperback
Page Count 294
Imprint University of California Press
Publisher University of California Press
Weight(grams) 408g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 20mm