西方文学的文化背景第三讲.docVIP

第三讲 古典时代的罗马文明 （约公元前753年至公元284年） （THE CLASSICAL CIVILIZATION OF ROME） （C. 753 B.C—284 A.D.） 罗马城约建立于公元前753年。 大致在亚历山大大帝征战时，罗马人已逐渐成为意大利半岛上的主要势力。时至公元前一世纪末，罗马人控制了希腊化世界的大部分地区和西欧的大部分地区。通过征服希腊化地区并毁灭北非的迦太基文明之后，罗马人得以将地中海变为“罗马人的内湖”。 Rome was founded in C.753 B.C. Around the time of Alexander’s conquests the emerging power of Rome was already a dominant force on the Italian peninsula. By the end of the first century B.C. it had imposed its rule over most of Hellenistic world and over most of western Europe. By conquering Hellenistic territory and destroying the North African civilization of Carthage, Rome was able to make the Mediterranean a “Roman lake”. 一、意大利半岛的地理环境 意大利半岛的地理环境对罗马人历史的发展影响很大。意大利除某些珍贵的大理石和少量锡、铜、铁和黄金之外，并无丰富的矿藏资源。其海岸线虽然相当长，但可用作良港的地方并不多。另一方面，意大利的肥沃土地比希腊半岛多，结果是罗马人在大多数的历史时期以务农为主，和外界贸易不多，缺乏沟通，所以思想比较守旧。又由于意大利半岛容易受到异族入侵，因为阿尔卑斯山脉无法有效地阻挡来自中欧的异族入侵。沿海的不少地方地势低，容易招来海上入侵。所以，罗马人几乎从定居意大利那一刻起就崇尚武功，因为他们不得不捍卫自己的征战成果，以防备其他的入侵者。 The geographical character of the Italian peninsula contributed significantly to the course of Roman history. Except for some excellent marble and small quantities of tin, copper, iron, and gold, Italy has no rich mineral resources. The extensive coastline is broken by few good harbors. On the other hand, the amount of fertile land in Italy is greater than that in Greece. As a result, the Romans remained a predominantly agrarian people through the greater part of their history. They seldom enjoyed the intellectual stimulus that comes from extensive trading with other areas. In addition, the Italian peninsula was more open to invasion than was Greece. The Alps posed no effective barrier to the influx of peoples from central Europe, and the low-lying coast in many places invited conquest by sea. Domination of the territory by force was therefore more common than peaceful intermingling of immigrants with original settlers. The Romans became absorbed in military pursuits almost from the moment of their settlement on Italian soil, for they were forced to defend th