Roman Mythology, Religion and Society

The paper discusses the influence of Roman mythology on Roman religion and society. It analyzes the modern Roman religion and sees the extent to which Roman mythology has influenced the shaping of modern Roman religion. The paper looks into the impact of Roman mythology on the Roman society and analyzes how Roman mythology has influenced Roman society.

Running head: ROMAN MYTHOLOGY, RELIGION AND SOCIETY
Roman mythology, religion and society
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ROMAN MYTHOLOGY, RELIGION AND SOCIETY
The human race is extremely superstitious in nature. Even in this age of availability of
extensive information and knowledge, logic often takes a back seat in the first instance (Berk
2016). People tend to associate the occurrences in the natural world with that of a higher Super
Power which cannot be defined or be touched. Such a frame of mind is due to the evolution of
mythologies and mystical stories. Mythology refers to a story which is told through out the ages
for the purposes of developing morals and values (Potter 2018). People consider these stories to
be fantasies and fairy tales but their implications on the shaping of society is high. The religious
doctrines are framed keeping the mythologies and their values in mind. The Gods and Goddesses
mentioned in the mythologies find their standing even in the modern religions of the world.
Mythologies also have a strong influence in shaping the concerned society. The values and
morals derived from these stories help the people of the society to understand what is expected of
them and what the things which are considered to be immoral are (Berk 2016). As such, the
influence of mythology can be found both in the religion of the world and in the society where
such myths have taken birth. The Roman mythology derives its inspiration from the Greek
mythology and Italian influences. Most of the Gods and Goddesses defined in Roman mythology
have their foundation in Greek mythology (Chatterjee 2017). This paper seeks to discuss the
influence of Roman mythology on Roman religion and society. For this purpose the paper first
discusses about the evolution of Roman mythology, making references to some of the most
important stories in this mythology. The paper then analyzes the modern Roman religion and
sees the extent to which Roman mythology has influenced the shaping of modern Roman
religion. Next, the paper looks in to the impact of Roman mythology on the Roman society and
analyzes how Roman mythology has influenced Roman society. The paper concludes with the
significance of mythology and its impact in the contemporary modern time period.

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The Gods and Goddesses mentioned in Roman mythology were conceived to be very
friendly with the human population (Berk 2016). They interacted with the human race frequently
and also interfered in the ordering of their society. When the civilization of Rome began to
become dominant in the peninsula of Italy, the people of Rome began to draw heavily from the
culture of the Greeks (Hamilton 2017). The impact of Greece on Rome was so high that there
was even an overlap in their mythical stories. However, prior to the influence of Greeks on the
Romans, there were around thirty original gods and goddesses who belonged solely to the
Roman civilization. These gods and goddesses were known as “indigetes” and they constituted
the Roman pantheon (Hamilton 2017). The people of Rome even held festivities and celebrations
in honor of these gods and goddesses. Roman mythology, like all other mythologies of the world
sought to provide certain moral values to the human race, which they considered to be important
for the society. It is for such aspect that the gods and goddesses of Roman mythology were
considered to belong to one particular aspect of life or domain. For instance, the character of
Ceres was seen to be a goddess whose main domain was the growth of crops (Oosten 2015).
Thus, whenever Rome was in need of more food grains, the people worshiped the goddess of
Ceres so that their food crops would increase.
With regard to the growth and development of the religion in Rome, Roman mythology
has had a profound influence. According to the stories, the second king of Rome of Sabine,
names Numa Pompilius was the god who founded the civilization of Rome (Bondanella 2017).
Numa was married to a goddess names Tatia, but rumor has it that the god also had a consort, by
the way of Egeria (Bondanella 2017). She was a nymph or a goddess of prophecy and also of the
fountains. The most important gods and goddesses of the Roman mythology are that of Minerva,
Juno and Jupiter. Minerva is considered to the goddess of wisdom (Oosten 2015). According to

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mythology, Minerva was the goddess who was the most intelligent and exercised great strategies
and tactics while undertaking any decision (Hamilton 2017). The god known as Jupiter is the
God of War (Oosten 2015). His character is portrayed to be one of aggressive and impulsive but
always manages to win the war due to his cunning and shrewd war decisions. Juno is the goddess
of love and peace (Hamilton 2017). Her character taught people how to be graceful and always
fight for the loved ones.
The main objective in the evolution of mythology is the various moralistic doctrines
which are imbibed in the religious scriptures. Rome is seen to be a country of great reverence for
tradition and customs (Vuković 2018). The religion of Rome is highly influenced by the
mythologies in the sense that even in the modern contemporary period, the references made to
the Roman mythology is very high. The ancient Roman religion based on mythology began to
gradually fade away with the introduction of Christianity within the peninsular region.
Christianity began to attract many rulers in the European continent and when Constantine I
became the ruler of the Roman civilization, he introduced the doctrines of Christianity within the
Roman civilization (Hunt 2016). This was the time when the ancient Roman religion gave way to
the new religion of Christianity. However, this did not mean that Roman mythology stopped
having influence over the religious scriptures. There are several important gods and goddesses of
the Roman mythology which is referenced even till date. For instance, the god of Apollo is
considered to be the God of Sun (Welch 2015). The day “Sunday” is considered to be the day
when Apollo is worshipped. Moreover, the goddess Fourtuna is worshipped as she is considered
to be the one impacting the fortune of a person (Hamilton 2017). The god of love, Cupid is
worshipped worldwide as he makes people fall in love (Maurizio 2015). All the various gods and

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goddesses as a result, still find their standing in the modern world due to their imagery in the
ancient mythological stories.
Roman mythology also has a huge impact on the Roman society (Hamilton 2017). The
very purpose of mythological stories is that they provide certain values and moralistic ideals
which needs to be adhered by the society for their well-being (Blundell 2016). Myths consist of
many such characters, especially those of various gods and goddesses which have certain human
like qualities. These gods and goddesses are shown to be facing those crises which any
individual could have faced and the myths then tell a story on how those gods and goddesses
used their power and presence of mind to overcome the concerned obstacle. As a result, myths
are shown to those stories which inspire the human race to undertake relevant challenges and
used moral ideals to overcome the hurdle (Hansen 2017). The people of the Roman society are
considered to be very fierce and wise because the society is framed after the reading of such
mythologies. These Romans derive their ideas and inspiration from the god of Jupiter and
Minerva and the like (Blundell 2016). These gods and goddesses are the epitome of moral values
and courage and they have played a significant role in shaping the Roman society as evidenced
today.
The gods and goddesses are shown in their human form in the mythologies, consisting of
various human emotions such as hate, jealousy, love and envy (Berk 2016). The mythologies tell
a tale of how these various gods and goddesses overcame their hurdles with determination and
strength. The myths encouraged the people to use such strength and nobility while undertaking
any action because the world is not a fair place where everything will go in accordance to one’s
desires (Campbell 2017). The monsters defeated by the gods and goddesses in these mythologies
represent the problems and hardships faced by the people in the modern world of today. Just like

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how those gods and goddesses overcame their problem, the mythologies try to show that it is
possible for the human race also to overcome their burdens (Segal 2015). The important life
lessons have been portrayed in these mythologies and as such, their impact on the shaping of the
society is too paramount. The importance of Roman mythology on Roman society has been
mentioned by many scholars. One such scholar is that of Ovid. Ovid was sent to exile by the then
Emperor Augustus who wanted to bring the old gods of Rome back in to reverence (Berk 2016).
In his works, especially that of Metamorphoses, Ovid wrote about the creation of the world and
the transformation of the human bodies from the past to the present age. He talked about all the
ages and how the gods and goddesses behaved in these time periods. All of these stories
mentioned in the book has helped the future generation to understand the basis of the Roman
civilization and the various qualities needed in an individual who would form an integral part of
the Roman society (Berk 2016).
In conclusion it is observed that mythologies play a significant part in the shaping of
religion and society of the human population. Rome is a country where the religious doctrines of
Christianity is followed. However, due to the presence of many gods and goddesses in the
ancient times, the society of Rome still worships not a single deity but many number of deities.
This has a serious impact of the Roman religion as the mythologies have changed the very
thinking capacity of the Roman people. Moreover, the stories of the mythologies also inspire the
people to act in similar manner with determinism and nobility while undertaking any tasks. The
society of Rome is rich in cultural values and traditions in their outlook and this is a significant
contribution of the Roman mythologies. The very purpose of mythologies is to impart certain
important morals to the people which are considered to be socially desirable. Rome, as a society,
has managed to ascribe to these moral ideas of great strength and courage as those propounded

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by the deities of Minerva and Jupiter. These in turn, has shaped the modern society of Rome
along with its religion in accordance with the values mentioned in the Roman mythologies.

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