Blog 2, Part 2

1. Women's role in the family and workplace. Juvenal's Satire 3 barely mentioned women at all. In general, women figure very little in writings about Rome. When they do, it is always in relation to men--who they are married to, whose daughter they are, whose child they bore. Women's role is very firmly in the home--there IS no career for a roman woman. She can't decide she wants to be a warrior or carpenter or roman citizen--those are things that are quite decidedly for men only. The struggle for a woman in our society to balance work and family is something that would be very difficult for a Roman woman to relate to.

2. The role and quality of government. Juvenal suggests that government is corrupt in his writings. He says, "No man will get my help in robbery, and therefore no governor will take me on his staff." Corruption in government is a problem in America today--politicians are frequently found to be serving their own selfish needs, and not those of the people. The involvement of government in everyday people's lives is not addressed as much in Juvenal's writings--probably because there were not big debates about whether or not government should pay for health insurance or put children in foster care, because there was no such thing as health insurance or foster care.

3. Right and wrong. Juvenal mentions situations that he finds wrong, yet seem to be frequent occurrence in Rome. "What can I do at Rome? I cannot lie; if a book is bad, I cannot praise it, and beg for a copy; I am ignorant of the movements of the stars; I cannot, and will not, promise to a man his father's death; I have never examined the entrails of a frog; I must leave it to others to carry to a bride the presents and messages of a paramour. No man will get my help in robbery, and therefore no governor will take me on his staff: I am treated as a maimed and useless trunk that has lost the power of its hands." In this quote, Juvenal expresses frustration that the idea of what is right and wrong, what is acceptable and what is abhorrent, seems to have changed, and he no longer has a place there. He points out that he feels there is dishonesty and cheating in Rome, yet others appear to be happy to live with that. In our society, we have a similar problem--some people find one thing wrong, while others don't see the problem, and think it is perfectly moral.

4. Equal treatment. Juvenal suggests that there is a problem with unfair treatment in Rome. Juvenal points out that the rich are treated better than the poor in Rome: "And what of this, that the poor man gives food and occasion for jest if his cloak be torn and dirty; if his toga be a little soiled; if one of his shoes gapes where the leather is split, or if some fresh stitches of coarse thread reveal where not one, but many a rent has been patched? Of all the woes of luckless poverty none is harder to endure than this, that it exposes men to ridicule". Not only are the poor mocked, but they are not believed--the rich are seen as more honest and trustworthy. "A man's word is believed in exact proportion to the amount of cash which he keeps in his strong-box". We still struggle with fair treatment today--and we constantly argue about how to enforce it. We try to make people hire without discriminating on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, ect. We have possibly created more problems in our efforts, but no doubt we still neglect true fair treatment...do we give the poor a fair chance?

5. Immigration. Juvenal addresses the immigration of Greeks to Rome. He expresses disgust that Rome is full of foreigners: "I cannot abide, Quirites, a Rome of Greeks". He seems particularly angry that foreigners have the ability to rise above a Roman. "Must I not make my escape from purple-clad gentry like these? Is a man to sign his name before me, and recline upon a couch better than mine, who has been wafted to Rome by the wind..." This is similar to the problem today--many people are upset at immigrants coming to America. The common argument is that they take away American jobs--rising above those who are citizens. Whether or not I agree with these arguments, it is clear that the immigration debate is long-standing.

Blog 2, part 1

1. Women's role in the family and workplace. I think it is really difficult for women to figure out the timing and responsibilities of their roles at home and at work. With specialization and new technologies, it is no longer a requirement for women to constantly be at home--women don't have to breastfeed, and if they want to work and breastfeed, they can pump and store breast milk. Since babies can survive without their mothers being with them constantly for the first few years, mothers are freed up a little--in addition, feeding a family and maintaining a home is much easier. It is no longer a full-time job to grow, process, and cook food. We have specialized beyond that. Many of the tasks that traditionally fell to women, since they were home with children they had to be pregnant with/breastfeeding anyway, are now much quicker or done by someone else. But being a mother is still incredibly emotionally, physically, and intellectually demanding...so how do we balance the many demands of family life with personal growth and career? Being a well-rounded, educated, involved person can only improve the quality of parenting...but how do women continue to grow themselves and also balance family? Should they get all of their education done first, and then have children? Combine the two? Work part-time?  It is a very difficult decision, and often a painful one for a woman that wants to have a family and also find personal fulfillment and development.

2. The role and quality of government. There is a lot of confusion right now about what government should or shouldn't do, and what is a right, or a privilege. Should government be able to take away a parent's children, if the parent is abusive and neglectful? Or do parents have ownership of their children--do they have a right to treat them however they want? Should government provide for the basic needs of everyone--food, clothing, shelter, health care? Is education a right? How much help do we give the poor? Are some poor undeserving of our aid? Or should we just let the fittest survive, and the weak die out? And does our government accurately represent the people? Are any of the people in office genuinely there to serve the people, or their own political and power needs? Do those in office understand the needs of the poor and helpless?

3. Right and wrong. What is right, and what is wrong? It seems we are constantly changing our ideas of what is wrong--as far as gender roles, equal rights, sexuality, violence, marriage, divorce, ect. Is there a universal truth? Does religion have a role in determining what is right and wrong? Can we impose our beliefs on others? Do we all live by personal standards, or can we force other people to adhere to a general truth? Can we legislate morals? This is something that is really confusing for many people. We seem to be able to agree that murder is wrong...but then we get into context. Can we murder burglars? What about in Texas?

4. Equal treatment. Currently, everyone is screaming for equal treatment. You cannot discriminate based on gender, race, sexual orientation, disability, ect. You cannot revoke someone's rights based on these things. Is this right or wrong? Should we advocate for even more equal treatment, or is this overboard? It is frightening to think of people with mental illness being treated differently based on their diagnosis...some would argue that anyone with a diagnosis should be refused gun ownership, or a job, or even custody of their own children. But 1 in 10 American adults suffers from depression...and then there's ADHD, alcoholism, anxiety...if we tried, we could probably diagnose everyone with something. It is frightening to think that something like that could be used against someone in taking away their rights. But on the other hand, perhaps some discrimination is reasonable. Should men be hired to work at a shelter for battered women? If so, is there any chance some women would not go to the shelter, having generalized their trauma to a fear of all men? Should those with disabilities be hired, just the same as those without? What if it is to work construction? How do we balance a need for equal treatment with a need for reasonable practicality?

5. Immigration. It fascinates me when people rant about illegal aliens taking jobs from American citizens. Do American citizens really want the jobs illegal immigrants take? Would anyone really want to work ridiculous hours picking fruit or cleaning? If they did, they would need to be paid significantly more. Are we willing to pay 3x as much for our produce? If we deport all of the illegal immigrants, it could seriously damage our economy--we could have farmers letting whole orchards go unpicked, because they can't find anyone willing  to do the work. We need those workers. But if we allow them to become legal American citizens, all of a sudden they have rights--rights to fair wages. And things get really expensive for us. Essentially, illegal immigrants are our not-quite-slave-labor. Are we ready to give that up and let them become citizens? Or are we just going to rant about them stealing our jobs? We can't deport them, because we need their labor. We can't make them citizens, because then we have to acknowledge their rights. And we can't admit this, because then we are evil nasties.