Fighting Hydra-Like Luxury - 9780715637074

From the Old Testament to classical Rome, from the religious societies of the Middle Ages to Elizabethan England, luxury has been morally condemned. In Rome, sumptuary laws seemed the only weapon to defeat 'hydra-like luxury', the terrible monster that was weakening even the strongest citizens. Here Emanuela Zanda explores the reasons and purposes behind the enactment of such legislation in Rome during the Republic, placing it in a wider political and social framework. She engages with the historical-literary polemic against luxury and focuses on government intervention in matters of extravagance by taking into consideration not only sumptuary laws but also other measures that dealt with self-indulgence. She addresses and answers a number of questions about the purposes that the ruling class was trying to achieve, about its real motivations, and about the significance of the ideological discourse surrounding the enactment of these laws. Finally, she provides a fascinating comparative perspective with sections on English, Italian and Japanese sumptuary legislation.