Murder of Regilla Review

Jacob Foster
Dr. Renzo Honores
Western Civilizations
Sarah B. Pomeroy Paper “The Murder of Regilla: A Case of Domestic Violence in Antiquity” is a novel written by Sarah B. Pomeroy describing the life of Regilla, a aristocrat of ancient Rome who married the plutocrat Herodes Atticus during the Atoine Age. The primary purpose of the book to review the events that led up to her alleged murder and accusations against Atticus. Regilla was an upper-class woman in the Greco-Roman society. She came from a wealthy and affluent family and through her connections could hold her own the political scheming of the empire. Her marriage to the powerful politician only increased her persuasion over the court and helped her in her connections. Regilla lived in a very comfortable (even luxurious) lifestyle that supported her ability to be well connected in her society. Though rare in the society, she was a literate woman and was educated in what we would now consider “Classics” today. Classics are the studies of Greek and Latin culture. She was well rehearsed in this area and was an intellectual of her time. A woman of this era to be considered of equal academic value as to a man would have to have an extreme aptitude for learning. I think that this is indicative of her capabilities in the realm of intellect and she was definitely at an above average rate of intelligence. A woman to be considered equal to a man in this era was not a common sight. In fact, it was not seen at all outside of this case. The legal status of a woman was that she was not considered a citizen and did not retain the right to vote in her community. This means that there was a heavy and one-sided legal system, which results to a superiority of males over females. Typically gender and power was asymmetrical throughout the entire world at this time so they were simply victims of societal expectations. That being said, the fact that Regilla had the power of influence would lead scholars to believe that