The dissertation offers a critical analysis of the Epitome de Caesaribus, a fourth-century Latin series on the lives of the emperors from Augustus to Theodosius (c. AD 395), and consists of seven chapters defining the text, the genre, its sources, its religious milieu, and its political and social ideas. The political ideas in the Epitome were deeply marked by the influence of the ascetic ideal honouring moderation in drink, food, sleep, sex, and emotions such as anger. Within the fourth-century Roman Empire, the epitomator offers moderate pagan views which show interest about dreams, asceticism, and the providential nature of the divinity. The dissertation proposes to see the Epitome as a literary artefact which, through comparison with contemporary authors, allows one to extract from a bland text ideas found among fourth-century elites in the emperor Honorius' Italy (395-423).

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This project examines the modern perception of ancient women, specifically through the creative (and often anachronistic) lens of film. All three women examined, Cleopatra VII, Livia Augusta, and Servilia Caepionis, all exemplify the modern influence on interpreting historical sources, resulting in all three becoming agents of feminism in their own times. Each woman did not culminate the probable influence they had in Roman society, but they are instead reflective of the patriarchal paradigms understood by 20th and 21st century audiences. The burgeoning feminist ideologies of the 20th century would influence the depictions of each character in an anachronistic fashion, distorting the actual control such figures had in history. While Elizabeth Taylor’s Cleopatra capitalized on youth and sexuality as tools of powers, Siân Phillips’ Livia emphasized age and experience to advance in patriarchal Rome. Servilia, however, was an older matron who had both the experience and the sexuality to control those around her. Whileeach figure approached it in very distinct methods, their common goal of changing Roman politics was reflective of the continued (and relatively unchanged) perception of ancient Roman women: as intelligent, yet dangerous, figures that served to derail patriarchal Roman politics. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection