Rome: The Past is Present

Introduction

We live in a "global" world, where people of different cultures, languages, and regions are connected to and influenced by each other. People travel more or less freely from country to country as immigrants, business people or tourists. We communicate across national boundaries and have windows into each others'lives through entertainment and the news. Ideas and culture travel too: there are McDonald's in Moscow and Japanese sushi can be found in most American cities and towns. All of this is new--or is it? The July and August National Geographic features articles on a "dead" civilization, ancient Rome, that the author sees as very much alive:

as a force that shaped the world we live in
as an mirror of some of our own strengths and weaknesses

How much were the ancient Romans like us? How much did they have to do with who we are? The statue above is of the first Roman emperor, Augustus. The statue below is of our first president, George Washington. The patriots who carried out the American Revolution knew a great deal about the ancient Romans, and drew inspiration from their history. This is part of our past as a nation. Your task will be to make some comparisons between ourselves and ancient Rome, discover what we've admired and imitated, and find evidence that Rome is still in some ways, alive in the world around us.

As you move through your research, keep in mind these:

Questions for Reflection

what makes a civilization strong?
what makes a civilization great?
why do civilizations "fall?"
why does one culture imitate another?
what are the qualities of a great leader?
how can a culture deal successfully with other cultures?
how can/should a culture deal with ethnic, racial and religious diversity

You should begin by getting a clear understanding of the tasks you'll be doing and and process you'll be following in your investigation. Use suggested local print and CD-ROM databases and World Wide Web resources and other reliable information sources you discover in the course of your research. You will provide the results of your investigation in both a final group presentation and invidividual written pieces.

Investigation Web Resources Presenting the Results

A Note to Educators

Ancient Rome Webquest Home Page
Kathy Foulke July 31, 1997
http://topcat.bridgew.edu/~kschrock/ED572/foulke/rmindex.htm

Picture of Emperor Augustus (upper left) courtesy of Justin Paola 1995
Picture of George Washington statue in front of the Redwood Library, Newport RI, Kathy Foulke 1997