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Shifting Discourses Of Roman Otium In Cicero, Catullus, And Sallust, Keegan Bruce

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This thesis examines the transitions that the Roman discourses of otium experience between the years 60–40 bce. I examine the instances of otium in Cicero, Catullus, and Sallust to reconstruct the discourses that influenced their usages of the term, and to shed light on how elite Roman men were adjusting to their shrinking access to the political sphere as a small number of men gained power. To perform this analysis, I rely on discourse theory and leisure studies. I have identified six main usages of otium in their writings: otium as free time; otium as peace, or time without disturbance; …