Roman+Republic+-+Sean+Taylor+Essay

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ESSAY There is no exact reason why the Roman Republic collapsed. But one of the main reasons for the great civilizations fall was because of the differing social classes. The republic started after the cruel tyrant king, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, was overthrown. Many issues arose from the humble beginnings of the republic which can be related with the modern world now. Firstly, there were two social classes; the plebeians and the patricians. The patricians were the rich and the plebeians were the common-people. Secondly, the plebeians fought for their rights. They wanted to be equal to the patricians. Lastly, power-hungry politicians used the differing factors between the two social classes to acquire more influence within the government. Men like the Gracchi Brothers exploited the plebeians in order to gain power. __The major factor that led to the demise of the Roman republic was the social war between the two social classes.__ From the humble beginnings of the Republic, there was statism. When Romulus, the alleged founder of Rome, made the first 100 senators of Rome, later called the “Patres” (fathers), their decedents became the patricians of Rome (Plutarch, 19). Patricians held onto the power and the wealth while the plebeians remained excluded from politics. However, the plebeians were the backbone of the prosperous city. They supplied grain and laboured to sustain the economy ( [] ). The barrier between the social classes was very large and obvious. The different groups resented each other; this resentment would lead to later turmoil.

The plebeians, realizing the important role they had in the economy of Rome, rebelled against the patricians in order to gain more political power. Within the first 15 years of the republic’s establishment, plebeians began to revolt against the patricians. Patricians knew that the plebeians held an important role within Rome; they could easily ruin the economy and could diminish the Roman’s military force. Patricians had to meet most the plebeians’ demands because of this fear ( [] ). Throughout the history of Rome, plebeians would increase their power to try to match that of the patricians. The Gracchi Brothers used the plebeians and their struggle for equality to become formidable political influences. The brothers filled the majority of plebes with popular beliefs against the patricians in order to gain power. Initially, their intentions were noble; they wanted to provide more land for poor farmers for their land was becoming smaller because of rich patricians. This upset many of the patricians. The tension between the different groups became extreme when riots and violence broke out. By this time, the Gracchus brothers held immense popularity with the plebes. Their drive for power eventually killed them. During riots, the Gracchi brothers were slain. Because of the Gracchi brothers, social tension was at its highest ( [] ). The Gracchi caused ultimate turmoil between the two social classes and Rome found war within itself. The struggle for power between the social classes tore the whole of Rome apart. Without the cooperation of the two, Rome could not function as a whole. This sheds light on statism nowadays. There is often resentment between the rich and the poor. Negative stereotypes are a prime example of the tension between the social classes of today. Although our social groups are not as apparent as the Romans’, we still experience problems including statism. Cities and countries need to understand the importance of the less wealthy. They provide the labour and the money for the big companies that influence the government; they are the ones that pay taxes for the government; and they are the ones that purchase goods that indirectly benefit the government. Society today needs to be rid of statism because it can rip the social fabric of today’s society; we shouldn’t let history repeat itself.