Pliny's Letters: Devotion to Public and Ethical Living - Essay Sample

Introduction

Although Pliny was a wealthy aristocrat, he still devoted himself to the public, and this led him to write several letters. His values in the letters have taught the readers about the significance of ethics and how people should always act morally. For instance, Pliny showed the significance of being devoted to the public and how to live together regardless of one's socioeconomic status. In this case, many people from low socioeconomic status have undergone challenges when trying to access facilities such as health care services.

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Consequently, Pliny has demonstrated his values using the letters to show the importance of being ethical and valuing one another. On the extreme, Pliny focused on politics when writing his letters to educate the readers about how political movements primarily affect the life of the citizens. The letters have presented much factual information about daily rituals of senatorial life. In this case, Pliny letters focused on corrupt government officials, which includes the treasury. Also, Pliny organized his letters around themes to educate the readers about various practices that people should exercise in their lives. Some of the ideas that are present in Pliny's letters include the theme of self-presentation and the theme of power and corruption.

The Theme of Self-Presentation

The theme of self-presentation has been used by Pliny to educate the reader about how people should present themselves to the public. In this case, Pliny presented himself to the public in the right way despite being from a wealthy family. Correspondingly, the excellent self-presentation helped Pliny to rise in the political ladder despite being in the reign of the dangerous Emperor Domitian (Birley, 1999). After reading Pliny's letters, one can learn that there is the significance of people to present themselves in public politely and ethically. In many cases, self-presentation affects how one relates to other people in society.

Therefore, a good relationship among people in the community can be steered by excellent self-presentation. Also, the theme of self-presentation has been used to show how the government officials are corrupt and how they deceive the public about various projects. Typically, political self-0presentation is mainly used by politicians to attract more followers. Therefore, Pliny used the theme of self-presentation to educate readers on how politicians engage in corrupt activities despite presenting themselves to the public in an excellent way.

The Theme of Power and Corruption

Corruption has been a significant threat to the development of various countries for decades. Therefore, Pliny used the theme of power and corruption to educate the community on how influential people engage in fraud due to their ranks. For instance, Pliny wrote about corrupt treasury, which revealed how government officials misuse government resources for their development (Birley, 1999). Also, the theme has been used by Pliny to show how corruption has delayed development in society.

Pliny also focused on his governorship to educate the readers about how politicians use their powers and engage in crime. The successful prosecutions against corrupt roman officials that were conducted by Pliny also represent the theme of power and corruption and prove that various government officials are corrupt.

The Situation of Jews in Alexandria from 'Letter of Claudius to the Alexandrians'

The letter of Claudius to Alexandrians reveals that Jews were prohibited from engaging themselves in various activities in Rome. In this case, the message can educate the reader on how Jews were discriminated against based on their religion. For instance, Emperor Claudius had warned Jews not to hold meetings in Rome. Also, the letter to Alexandrians showed that the roman Jews were threatened not in the future to send out a separate embassy.

Typically, people who are discriminated against due to various characters such as origin, race, and region face many challenges in the community. Therefore, the letter to Alexandrians was used to educate the readers on the significance of treating everyone equally irrespective of the differences. Similarly, the Jews were warned not to agitate for more privileges than they formerly possessed, which shows that Jews were mistreated and were denied some of their rights, such as the right to worship.

Claudius restricted the admission of Jews who came from Egypt and Syria to avoid religious and political disturbances (Birley, 1999). Therefore, one can also learn that religious conflicts were experienced, and Jews were involved in these religious conflicts. Furthermore, banning the Jews from engaging in activities such as the synagogue meetings was also meant to ensure that peace was maintained during the reign of Emperor Claudius. Also, readers can learn that there is the likelihood that the conflicts involved disputes about Jesus.

Jews also had many own affairs that they benefited from, and this led Claudius to restrict them from intruding in games that were held by the gymnasiarchs. Claudia had stated that the Jews had an abundance of many good things. In this case, one can learn that Jews were only restricted to participate in activities that would steer religious conflicts. Also, the letter reveals that Claudius respected the Jews regardless of putting strict measures that restricted them from being involved in specific activities. For instance, he urged the Alexandrians to act more gently and kindly toward the Jews who had lived in the city for a lengthy period (Birley, 1999). Also, Claudius had promised Jews that he would exercise the highest consideration for their town of Jews as a city that has been of Romans for an extended period.

However, the Jews had to comply with Claudius' terms and conditions for him to keep his promises. Consequently, Jews opposed to Christians is one of the main reasons that led Claudius to warn them and restrict them from being involved in some activities. Also, Claudius urged the Jews and Christians to live together, which shows that religious conflict was the main issue that was being avoided by Claudius. Therefore, one can learn that Jews faced felt oppressed due to the restrictions that were enforced by Claudius. Also, one can determine that the Jews were discriminated and restricting them from engaging in multiple activities denied them some human rights.

Despite being born in a wealthy family and being educated in the law, Cyprian was arrested under the orders of Galerius Maximus and executed. During his time as a bishop, Cyprian was confronted by the Decian persecution, and this shows that Cyprian misused his leadership. For instance, many Christians rejected their faith and declared that they had sacrificed to the pagan gods. Therefore, it was essential to order the execution of Cyprian since he misguided many people and ended up. Moreover, the fact that Cyprian had fled in early 250 after being confronted reveals that he was guilty of his actions (Birley, 1999). Typically, people go into hiding after being involved in illegal acts. However, Cyprian insisted that the reason he went into hiding was to guide his flock in the right manner and avoid seeking the glorious crown of martyrdom (Birley, 1999). Therefore, it was right to order the arrest and execution of Cyprian since he was involved in illicit acts. Also, some of his actions oppressed the people, and this led to his execution. For instance, Cyprian held councils and ordered that there could be no baptism outside the church.

Therefore, Novatianists who had received baptism were to be baptized again, and this reveals that Cyprian was harsh and had lousy leadership traits. Cyprian was also a major public figure; therefore, many people were likely to emulate him. Consequently, it was essential to order his execution to avoid him from misguiding society. Also, Cyprian had refused to leave the city, whereby he stated that his people should have the witness of his martyrdom (Birley, 1999). Cyprian's summon before the proconsul, where he was assigned an enforced residence at Curubis was also a way of revealing that Cyprian was misguiding his people. Therefore, Cyprian's actions show that it was right to order his arrest and execution.

The Question in Section II

Augustus enacted many reforms, and the authors have focused on how Augustus transformed the Roman Empire. For instance, Augustus worked and focused on improving and beautifying the city of Rome. On the extreme, Augustus successfully initiated religious reforms to revive the belief of the Romans in their gods (Birley, 1999). Also, the inclusion of a new province showed that Augustus was transforming Rome and used his leadership to ensure that his emperor was effective.

Religious issues also influenced the development of the Roman Empire, whereby the Jews and Christians were treated differently. For example, the letter by Pliny stated that his investigation revealed nothing on the Christians (Birley, 1999). Also, the authors have revealed that many people accepted and valued other people's beliefs. For instance, Claudius' letter showed that there was a need for Jews and Christians to value and respect other religions. Also, Christianity was spread by apostles and missionaries; however, it was seen as a threat to the Roman Empire.

The apostles were even persecuted to prevent the spread of Christianity. However, Emperor Constantine became a Christian, whereby he ensured that Christians were not persecuted (Birley, 1999). Therefore, one can learn that Christianity was not accepted in the Roman Empire, but people gradually accepted it and started valuing Christian's beliefs. Augustus also played a significant role in ensuring that peace and prosperity were achieved in the Roman Empire, whereby he ensured that both Jews and Christians were allowed to maintain their religion and culture

The authors also revealed how politics and beliefs were the main issues that affected the development of the Roman Empire. Greed and exhortation were also minimized in the Roman Empire, whereby the way governors were appointed was changed. Therefore, the various issues that the authors wrote about have revealed that it was significance to ensure that unity was practiced, and both Jews and Christians should be treated equally. Correspondingly, Augustus was victorious and played a significant role in transforming the Roman Empire and ensuring that peace and development were achieved.

References

Birley, A. (Ed.). (1999). Agricola and Germany. OUP Oxford.