How are ancient Rome similar or different from our modern civilization today?

Question

thanks!

Answer 1

The ancient Roman economy was fed by slave labor. Their system of slavery wasn't based on race, though - it was based on prisoners of war. And the Romans were intelligent enough to know that a man who was good at math was not well used as a field hand. Nor was there stigma attached to the children of slaves.

The Romans were cruel and enjoyed watching animals and gladiators slaughter themselves live. You could argue that we are at least as barbaric, as we love violent movies with lots of killing.

The Romans valued education a lot more than we do, but for them a good education meant mastering the Latin classics. The task of modern educators is much harder, as we have many more different types of jobs and specialties.

Both Roman and modern Western culture share practicality and a sharp nose for business.

The Romans built much better roads than we do. Their road beds were 6' deep and were capped with large limestone blocks. Our roads have a dirt bed and perhaps 8" of asphalt or concrete. It's no wonder we have to do major work on our roads every 5 years! Some of the ancient Roman roads are still functional.