So, the question
that begs to be asked is, “What caused the change?” While no one has a clear answer, declining
birth rate may have begun to cause problems for homoromantic couples, while at
the same time beginning to lead to a condemnation of abortion and other forms
of birth control.[1] The birth rate was on the decline in the Roman Empire around the turn of the Millennium.[2] Since Roman leaders needed to keep their
armies up, the acetic traditions and homosexuality, as well as non-reproductive
sexual contact, would likely have been problematic for the Empire. The leaders would likely have thus started a
campaign to reduce asceticism, abortion, and exclusive homosexuality.
Plutarch in the 1st
century CE wrote that male relationships were not based on love. He referred to them as “the lowest depth of
vice,” so we can see the beginnings of a swing from acceptance to
rejection. Though I am unsure whether or
not he was referring to relationships with the men both being of the same age
or pederasty.[3] And, Pliny the Elder, also from the 1st
century, “condemns pathic behaviors as ‘persersions of sex’ … achieved ‘by
crime against nature,’” and “Seneca levels the same criticism at
transvestitism.”[4] Ovid wrote at least one poem where a woman
who loved another woman was unhappy at the prospect and complained that such
was not the case in the animal world.
Obviously Ovid didn’t know animals or at least the character didn’t.[5] So, a change appears to occur shortly after
the start of the Common Era.
Roman law was
going through a metamorphosis as well.
The Lex Scantinia and the Lex Julia neither one specifically
mention non-abusive same-gendered romance.
The first was used against rape, pedophilia/pederasty, etc. The latter was specifically against adultery,
though it was thought to have been used in some charges against same-gendered
adultery, this does not indicate that it was a law against homoromantic
couples.[6] The law also indicated, “A married woman’s
sexual involvement with another woman was defined as adultery.”[7] So, while the law was going through a change,
it was not a radical departure. Clement
of Alexandria in second century CE claimed that
homosexuality was not illegal in Rome
in his lifetime.[8] These laws, which admittedly were written in
the 3rd and 1st centuries BCE, appeared to be receiving
more use and attention against non-heterosexual couples during the latter part
of the 2nd century CE.
In addition to the
use of laws, physicians’ attitudes were changing. Soranus, the physician of the first century
BCE mentioned earlier, was leading the revolution of sexual abstinence. He indicates that the loss of semen is
unhealthy for the body.[9] Soranus also considered homosexuality a
disease.[10] By the first century of the Common Era,
“Musonious Rufus taught that sexual relations are reprehensible even in
marriage unless they had a reproductive purpose. For the same reason – the fact that it was
sterile – homosexual intercourse was to be condemned.”[11] So, while there were folks who had no
problems either with or expressing homoerotic love, some did. One must be careful to weigh all of the
factors when determining the attitudes of an entire people.
Now, the laws
really begin changing. By the 3rd
century CE, “Emperor Philip attempted to outlaw homosexual prostitution.”[12] While one may be tempted to claim that
clearly homosexuality was outlawed by this, Justinian’s code in 534CE made suprum cum masculis “illicit sex with
males” illegal indicating that until then not all sex between males was
illegal.[13] Sadly, I could find little information about
sex between women during this change.
While the Roman laws against homosexuality were put in place by
Christian Emperors, this does not indicate that pagans “of the same class” were
any more accepting of same-gender romance by the time the laws were enacted. This would likely be due to the ascetic
movement within pagan circles.[14] Boswell also notes that Roman legal cases
against homosexuality increased in the third century CE, but all forms of
homosexuality were outlawed in the sixth century.[15]
No comments:
Post a Comment