The History of Contrasts: Cato the Elder and Rome the ‘Younger”

This study is an essay to reinterpret the spirit of the period that we can assume as the first stage of the Roman Empire’s conversion into a world empire in terms of Cato the Elder’s biography. While making this reinterpretation, it is based on the factor of ‘conflict’. The aforementioned ‘conflict’ includes both the contrasts causing the change of the society in early Republican period of Rome and Cato’s conflicts with this change and his own personality. Cato is an exemplary Roman despite his Sabine roots, a conservative who defends the core values ​​of Rome against the influences of Greek culture, and a farmer, a soldier, a lawyer, an orator, a writer and a politician referred as ‘old type Roman’ starting his career as ‘New Man’. He owes the success he gained in Roman political field to the traditional values of Rome, where he played the role of advocacy and the network of relationships he formed, which makes up a significant part of the symbolic capital. Throughout his career, Cato defined Rome’s ‘enemies’ as Greek culture effect, Carthage, the degeneration of Roman values and mercenariness and with their existence, he paved way for his recognition. His strongest weapon against his most important political rival ‘Scipio’ was always ‘Roman values’. With the prominence he gave to the concept of Roman citizenship and the efforts he spent for the formation of Roman identity, he is still a significant name for Roman history studies. As a result, in the study, while Rome seized Mediterranean sovereignty, as a witness to the political and social conversion, the contrasts experienced in the resistance of Cato against this change (culturally ‘degeneration’) were tried to be revealed.

Keywords

Ancient history, Cato the Elder, history of Rome, history of Roman Republic, social transformation, Roman citizenship