How Badly Pompeii was Affected by the Eruption of Mount Vesuvius

By the first century, Pompeii had many little cities and towns located near the base of Mount Vesuvius. This is where a substantial population grew, and had an affluent agricultural richness. However, it was on August 24, 79 that disaster struck. Mount Vesuvius literally blew its top, for the first time in 700 years, causing masses of molten ash, along with pumice and sulfur gas, suffocating both the inhabitants of Pompeii, along with people in adjacent cities. It also produced leaping flames coming off of several different points, whose bright glare was emphasized by the darkness of night. It was at this point that men, women, and children alike started to flee the city. "You could hear the shrieks of women, the wailing of infants, and the shouting of men; some were calling their parents, others their children or their wives, trying to recognize them by their voices."(Berry, 22) Many knew that a gruesome fate that was ahead for their relatives, which was death. Many prayed for the aid of the gods, however many thought they no longer existed.

Vesuvius had entered a history of volcanology with an eruption in 79AD.This explosion of the famous volcano had destroyed Herculaneum, Oplonti, along with the major city of Pompeii. Before its major eruptions, several earthquakes occurred, but were disregarded by the local community as just another phenomenon. "Wells dried up and springs stopped flowing. Dogs howled and birds were strangely silent. But Pompeiians went about their daily business, oblivious to the rumblings under their feet or the strange behavior of their pets."(Roberts, 16) However, Vesuvius’ major destroying eruption would not go unnoticed.

Residents quickly gathered as many personal belongings as possible out of their homes, and evacuated quickly to escape the choking ash. Much of the residue from the hurling debris gathered on rooftops, causing them to collapse. Slaves guided their masters through the streets on chairs, while livestock and carts were crowded all along the walkways. By dusk, ninety percent of the population had reached safety, and more would have most likely been out of harm if they were aware of what the mountain had in store. Instead they chose to ignore all of the warning signs including many earthquakes that shook the land beforehand.

The city was left in a state of devastation. An estimated 20,000 people died within the six surges of the eruption. The inhabitants who did not flee or die during the eruptions, were the first to be turned to an alternate technique of climbing trees in desperation in order to escape the dense pumice and debris that crowded the streets. However, many still died; the two primary causes being suffocation from the fumes, and broken bodies from the force of the eruption. Although most people were able to escape from the town, many still perished within the city of Pompeii and the nearby countrysides. It would not be until many years later through different avenues of excavation and rebuilding would frightening signs of death be present, such as extremely precise figures and outlines of the destined Pompeianites who were unsuccessful in their attempt to escape. Reisn and plaster would be used to capture the victims in their last seconds of life with supernatural expressions on their faces with detailed, disinct life like characteristics.

The city of Pompeii had not only endured severe damages to the land itself, but also the population. About 1,150 bodies were found through a recovering process within the ash deposits. The city of Pompeii was not rebuilt at that time, as the townspeople did not want to undertake the very extensive work that would need to take place in order to revitalize it. Much of the village and towns have been forgotten, as they are buried under several feet of ash due to the lava flow. Additionally, weathering erosion, and light exposure have all damaged the city over the years. The lack of air and moisture have allowed for the objects to remain underground, which makes the site good for analysis to understand more of this disaster. This remarkable tragedy, though terrible, has been in a state of conservation, providing its legacy to live on.

Even though the city of Pompeii was completely buried, it was revived to a degree again beginning in 1748 after more than 1600 years since its destruction at the hands of volcanic activity. Although many of the people were found buried under twelve layer of soil, astonishingly enough, many of the buildings were well preserved as well as the bodies which were frozen in time often dipicted in those just going about their daily routine of life that fateful day the volcano erupted. The ruins at Pompeii have imparted archaeologists much indispensible information with regards to how the people in the Roman Empire lived. The city of Pompeii is a fashionable travel destination today and one of the most visited cities with a prosperous income produced from curious travelers eager to get a glimpse of pop culture and history.

Berry, Joanne. The Complete Pompeii. London: Thames and Hudson Publishers, 2007.

Roberts, Russell. Mt. Vesuvius and the Destruction of Pompei, AD 79. United States: Mitchell Lane Publishers, 2005.

Stoic Movement in Ancient Rome

The single most important philosophy in Rome was Stoicism, which had its start in Hellenistic Greece. The substance within the worldview was very applicable to Roman religion, particularly because its insistence on agreeing that all situations were acceptable. This created a mindset for the people of being able to achieve their own level of virtue. However, the core of Stoicism was the concept of logic, and achieving virtue and worth through naturalistic beliefs. To them, this is what gave meaning to the universe.



Stoicism was the philosophy of both the Greek and Roman philosophers. These people were known as "Stoics" because of the school's founders, who were Zeno and Cyprus. These leaders taught at the Stoa Poikile(the painted porch) which is how the name came about. Their primary focus was on having a thriving relationship between cosmic determinism and human freedom, which included having a virtuous relationship and living in harmony with nature. "An effect of this portrayed their beliefs as a way of living, and thought that the best sign of an individuals outlook was not by words, but actions. "(Strange, 23) In was in Rome’s Ancient history that people such as Seneca and Epictetus accentuated that "virtue is sufficient for happiness"; a main theme within this movement.


The basic tenets of this movement were that it provided a correct outlook on the world through naturalistic ethics and formal logic. Logic to the Stoics referred to the meaning of an individual through the extent of sentences. "They used this method and stated that a sentence has no meaning unless it is completed, which implied that everything that happened on a daily basis was part of a bigger meaning, in painting the picture of history."(Sellars, 45) It was a component to greater good or reason. A quote that explains the connection between logic and using words to express it states, "Make yourself a definition or description of the thing which is presented to you, so as to see distinctly what kind of a thing it is in the substance, in its complete entirety, and tell yourself its proper name, and the names of the things of which it has been compounded, and into which it will be resolved. For nothing is to productive of elevation of mind as to be able to examine methodically and truly object to what is presented to you in life." This statement is essentially saying that we as human beings can create our own reality to live by, according to our own logic, paving our on way, relying only on ourselves.



They also emphasized ethics in a way that based itself off of human knowledge, and in addition was an agent for teaching of self control and morals. By gaining understanding through this, it taught people how to be good thinkers, and to comprehend universal reasoning, making improvements on them as a person. Another saying that goes along with this is "Virtue consists in a will which is in agreement with nature." In order to have virtue and live correctly, you must adjust your life according to natural law.


The idea of Stoicism is very contrary to our currant system in our world today. It is evident that Stoics concentrated on the values of simplicity and equality amongst their people. In our modern culture, we do not view all people the same and are very critical and quick to judge within society. We also do not use common logic often, which would be looked down upon from their culture.



Another component of the Stoic structure was their ethics, which are seen very rarely today. Contrary to ethics being the only way to both achieve and understand true good, we have almost completely discarded ethics, which has the effect of corrupt souls. There are no sufficient means for happiness anymore, as our culture is extremely secular. A corresponding idea recited by a Stoic says that "the person who has achieved perfect consistency in the operation of his rational faculties, the "wise man", is extremely rare yet serves as a prescriptive for all." This sufficiently explains our culture today in comparison with Stoicism- we have fallen from conducting our lives with logic and morals, making prudent individuals hard to come by.

As stated above, it is very clear that the Stoic movement had its primary values that composed their belief system. It was through logic and naturalistic concepts that Stoics formed their worldview and outlook on life. Contrary to the modern Society, we do not take the time to think through situations with the precise logic this movement presents, but rather settle for mediocrity, not caring if we understand the world around us fully. Despite these differences, and the poor outlook the Stoics might have on our society, both are their own views on the world that can easily be contrasted, which is a key factor in understanding both histories.

Sellars, John. Stoicism: University of California Press: 2006.

Strange, Steven K. Stoicism: Traditions and Transformations: Cambridge University Press: 2004.

Early Christian Movement: Impacted by the Roman Empire

The underpinnings of Christianity as it relates to the Roman Empire is one that benefited from great widespread expansion throughout the height of the empire as never seen before. With Rome under stable control around the time of 27 BC, the society had entered an age of prosperity, expansion, and political stability. It was during this same period that Christianity began to develop. This growth was made possible through the inner orderliness of the church, which caused it to spread and eventually become institutionalized.

The very beginning of Christianity's official growth occrued with the church. "Since the very start of the religion, Christianity was scattered throughout the Roman Empire , however keeping Christianity unified was a major concern of the church leaders."(Novak, 32) It was the structure and arrangment of the Roman Empire that influenced how Christianity first came about. It also affected how it spread throughout other regions, which started out in urban cities, which were mainly populated by slaves and the poor, eventually spreading throughout Rome and a vast majority of the citizens.

One of the most important factors in the growth of Christianity by the Roman Empire was when Constantine was emperor. He saw the religion as a potential coalesce for society, and began to rapidly expand it. He began this by constructing several churches throughout Rome, and also passed decrees allowig many religions to be tolerated, but making clear that the people of Rome would benefit from Christianity the most. Many people were initially skeptical at this idea, since Christianity had taken nearly three centuries to fully develope, but he still adhered to the hope that it would gain imperial support as the others religions of that time had. He also appointed many bishops in order to help him with his movement and thus, Constatine's reign not only made early Chirstianity popular, but also equipped it with prestige in order for it to flourish.

Additionally, another person who would prove to have a significant impact on the growth of Christianity during Rome's history was Theodosius I. Although he was not a very well-known emperor, there is no doubt that he had a major role in expanding Christianity. As Michael Grant put it, "He earned the title Great becasue of his devout Christianity." "The main reason for this was that he used his power to actively enforce the religion, which ended up placing the power under the church, which set a standard for more than a millenium."(Addis, 42) Theodosius first displayed that he was a supporter of early Chirstianity and relied on God's help when he was witnesses in distress during a riot, and was observed publicly pleaded for God's mercy. It was clearly perceived that these actions marked a new chapter in Rome's history- one that would be marked in history as unifying church and state.

Yet another Roman emperor who devoted a majority of his reign in spreading Christianity was Jovian. At this point, both the Roman and Christian Empires celebrated at the arrival of another Christian as the leader of the state and his attention was primarily on impacting the Roman empire by turning all paegan temples in the area to churches. Another major step taken, was reestablishing Christianity as the official religion of Rome and continuing even farther, it was during his reign that Christianity remained the primary religion in both the Western and Eastern Roman Empires.

At the heart of Christianity's rise to prominence within the Roman Empire, credit can be given to many of the emperors named above. In addition, a result of this, many people converted to Christianity as a result of both because of the early church and the Christian emperors who devoted their power and prominence to help it continue in its strength. The ultimate attempt at seperating church and state was no longer possible during this time, as this religion was both the official and dominant belief throughout Rome. Despite its slow progression, early Christianity, under the Roman influence, came to domination.

Novak, Ralph. Christianity and the Roman Empire: Continuum International Publishing Group: 2001.

Addis, William. Christianity and the Roman Empire: Sunday School Association: 2006.