Nerd Herd and the War on Racelassism -Will Brady
To let the plebs hold public power, or not to let the plebs hold public power? That is the question.
Okay, so the Livy excerpt was flipping hard to follow. Maybe this is because my mind has been slipping from me little by little over the past week, but I had to read this several times and still struggle to keep the speakers straight... Seriously, it's even harder than with The Republic. Nevertheless, I can still hear Canuleius shouting "FREEDOM" in a William Wallace voice as he advocates for the rights of plebeians. I wouldn't be sure how much of his assertions that the patricians were "indignant because [the plebs] eat and utter speech and wear the form of men" were mere propaganda, but according to our historian (presuming we can trust him), the patricians opposing him basically said as much. According to the patricians, there should be no intermarriage between classes because "The offspring of such marriages would not know which blood flowed through his veins, what sacred rights he might perform; half of him patrician, half plebeian, he would not even be in harmony with himself." ...Pardon?
The hardest thing about a comment like that is labeling it. Is that prejudice based on classism? Or are the patricians labeling the plebeians as a different-blooded, inferior race and acting out of racism? When you advocate that a different group can't breed with your group lest they produce mentally confused and inferior children, what "ism" is that? Now, I understand that the basis of the patricians' argument isn't based on genetics, but on one financial class of people being superior to others because of their wealth. But at the same time, it draws a plain line between superior people and inferior based on the circumstances of what they happened to be born as; it then suggests that being born half-inferior still makes you tainted even though you would likely inherit your upperclassman-parent's wealth. There's more to this issue than just money--traces of the honor culture, perhaps? If that were so, of course, than a mixed-breed Roman could simply prove himself honorable and erase the stain of his half-plebeian parenthood that way.
So is it racism, classism, or a groundbreaking new form of racelassism? ...It really doesn't matter. The point is that if both were erased, people would still look for dumb excuses to discriminate against others and make themselves feel superior. That's really all that they are: pathetic attempts at boosting your fragile ego by putting other people down. To be realistic, defeating racism, classism, sexism, or any other ism won't fix the problem of human nature. We'll just make up something new or discriminate on no real basis at all, like the patricians. The pendulum does not stop: it's going to swing farther and farther in both directions until it snaps off and crashes to the ground, killing almost all of us. If you would rather not believe that, I implore you to look in the Bible. With that in mind, will you despair to fight what you can't defeat, the unalterable fallen condition of mankind? Or will you rage against the darkness with what little power you have and win what you can from it while you wait for God to wipe the board clean? We can discuss Gilgamesh's quest for immortality and Orestes' ideas of justice all we want, but at the end of the day this question is why we have Honors. It's good to remind ourselves of that now and then—the confusing, boring readings may still hold the core of why we’re doing all this.
P.S. I commented on Sophia and Cade’s posts.
Okay, so the Livy excerpt was flipping hard to follow. Maybe this is because my mind has been slipping from me little by little over the past week, but I had to read this several times and still struggle to keep the speakers straight... Seriously, it's even harder than with The Republic. Nevertheless, I can still hear Canuleius shouting "FREEDOM" in a William Wallace voice as he advocates for the rights of plebeians. I wouldn't be sure how much of his assertions that the patricians were "indignant because [the plebs] eat and utter speech and wear the form of men" were mere propaganda, but according to our historian (presuming we can trust him), the patricians opposing him basically said as much. According to the patricians, there should be no intermarriage between classes because "The offspring of such marriages would not know which blood flowed through his veins, what sacred rights he might perform; half of him patrician, half plebeian, he would not even be in harmony with himself." ...Pardon?
The hardest thing about a comment like that is labeling it. Is that prejudice based on classism? Or are the patricians labeling the plebeians as a different-blooded, inferior race and acting out of racism? When you advocate that a different group can't breed with your group lest they produce mentally confused and inferior children, what "ism" is that? Now, I understand that the basis of the patricians' argument isn't based on genetics, but on one financial class of people being superior to others because of their wealth. But at the same time, it draws a plain line between superior people and inferior based on the circumstances of what they happened to be born as; it then suggests that being born half-inferior still makes you tainted even though you would likely inherit your upperclassman-parent's wealth. There's more to this issue than just money--traces of the honor culture, perhaps? If that were so, of course, than a mixed-breed Roman could simply prove himself honorable and erase the stain of his half-plebeian parenthood that way.
So is it racism, classism, or a groundbreaking new form of racelassism? ...It really doesn't matter. The point is that if both were erased, people would still look for dumb excuses to discriminate against others and make themselves feel superior. That's really all that they are: pathetic attempts at boosting your fragile ego by putting other people down. To be realistic, defeating racism, classism, sexism, or any other ism won't fix the problem of human nature. We'll just make up something new or discriminate on no real basis at all, like the patricians. The pendulum does not stop: it's going to swing farther and farther in both directions until it snaps off and crashes to the ground, killing almost all of us. If you would rather not believe that, I implore you to look in the Bible. With that in mind, will you despair to fight what you can't defeat, the unalterable fallen condition of mankind? Or will you rage against the darkness with what little power you have and win what you can from it while you wait for God to wipe the board clean? We can discuss Gilgamesh's quest for immortality and Orestes' ideas of justice all we want, but at the end of the day this question is why we have Honors. It's good to remind ourselves of that now and then—the confusing, boring readings may still hold the core of why we’re doing all this.
P.S. I commented on Sophia and Cade’s posts.
I agree with the issue of discrimination that you explained. The patricians do not want to affiliate with the plebeians in any manner because they view themselves as a superior people. Strangely, they based this on their wealth, which might I add is a completely fluid attribute that can change momentarily. Money is their idea of good, and they view anyone without a certain amount of money as unclean or impure. It's a terrible mindset that is poisonous to decision making, and as you can see, leads to some stupid actions. Our human nature is fallen and beyond repair without divine intervention, and it's that realization only that allows for a clear understanding of the world and its actions.
ReplyDeleteWell, it's definitely some type of "ism!" I personally am leaning towards a very unnecessarily aggressive form of classism. I also really loved your call to action at the end. It's so imperative to rage against the darkness even if it seems futile. Never sit idly by when you see injustice. We must fight it with everything, even if the outcome seems bleak. Things like Livy's writings remind us that even in the midst of senseless sinfulness, good can and will prevail eventually.
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