Why Are Men Obsessed With the Roman Empire?
“Only give them history books. Men should read nothing else.”
Napoleon Bonaparte
I will say at the beginning what I am supposed to mention at the end of this article: What captivates the minds of men regularly is the glory of the Roman Empire. Although Maslow’s hierarchy of needs did not predict such a particular need for humans, most men, after finding a piece of bread and a glass of wine to put the feed bag on, sense the desire to create something glorious or do some act that will allow them to feel the sense of glory.
The lack of our age in terms of glorious actions or things leaves no exit for men except imagining the Roman period in which they can smell something beyond mediocrity. Today, even the most educated and talented men fill their days doing Excel work, preparing PowerPoint presentations, or creating social media content — tons of nonsense nobody ever cared about. They feel pain after reading Caesar’s Commentaries on the Gallic War because, first time in their lives, they find a way of living that contains no bullshit.
The nature-led order of the world is also one of the reasons why we are interested in this period. The notion of equality or peace between sexes, citizens, races, empires, etc., was strange to the Romans. You can rightfully ask: How can that be a reason to be interested in a period in the first place? Well, most men don’t admit this to you. Still, we indeed like hierarchy even when we say the opposite, and when we think about something, we always conceptualize it with its subordinates and superordinates.
Did you ever realize we have almost nothing around that we can call honestly beautiful? I’m not talking about the kind of beauty that obese Calvin Klein models supposedly have. Take a walk in your city center: all you see will be ugly apartments, bumpy roads, and giant shopping malls — nothing else. Now, go to the nearest ancient ruin in your city and look at what Romans have built. Even after two thousand years of desolation, a temple’s wreck is more beautiful than any mosque has ever existed. The equation is simple: Men love beautiful things, and the Roman Empire is responsible for the most beautiful buildings in the world, so men love the Roman Empire.
I know that some ladies are curious about what their men specifically think about the Roman Empire. I can’t read all men’s minds, but I can verbalize one of them: my own. Here is a list of what your man may be thinking about the Roman Empire specifically:
- What was it like being a soldier invading Gaul in one of the Legions that Caesar commanded? What did they feel? How much were they scared? How often did they think about their wives? Did they miss their motherland?
- Did Octavian say, “Have I played the part well? Then applaud me as I exit,” as his last words before dying, or is it just an invention? Did he genuinely care about avenging his great uncle, or were his actions merely self-centered?
- How many days or weeks it took to build one kilometer of road? According to which criteria they have decided the routes of roads? How many hours a day did the road-builder workers or slaves work, and what did they eat?
- How was it like being a farmer constantly looted by barbarian tribes? What did they think about their future? How did they protect their family members against looters? Did they ever sleep at night comfortably?
- At what frequency did people die in sea accidents? What was it like to travel on a ship for days surrounded by a frightening sea and numerous pirates?
To summarize the topic, we can say three main factors lead men to think -and often romanticize- the Roman Empire regularly: Firstly, in our tamed century, it’s impossible for a man to show courage, gain a victory, and feel the sense of glory in any honorable manner. Secondly, our civilization has become so unnatural and sensitive that any indicator implying you are superior to anyone on anything may cause your exclusion from a community or society. And finally, the current environment of our living spaces and cities offers nothing aesthetically pleasing.
Napoleon’s advice to his officers to read only history books and nothing else aimed at another purpose: preparing them for the battle tactics they would encounter. Although we have no real battles to give now -and maybe there lies all the problems of today’s men- we should still be in touch with history books and historical thoughts to endure all the worthless tasks, distorted relationships, and sickening ugliness we come across every day.
