Images of the Gods and Political or Cultural Messages - Essay Example

Later in Byzantium, the religion was turned to be Christian and so the portrayal of Christ can be seen more in this Byzantine (Roman) culture. Both the ancient and the Roman religious system were based on the hierarchical order. In the Roman culture, the greatest god was Jupiter, and Juno was the majestic queen of heaven. In ancient Greek culture, Zeus and Hera are the supreme gods. The political rivalry between the Titans and the Olympians is very common in Greek mythology.

In Roman mythology, the gods were at first ‘rumina,’ formless and divine manifestations, but later under Greek influence, they too got human form. In Roman culture, as their gods are not appearing before people the interpreters of gods came forth. Romans give much importance to omens and portents. In Greek and Roman cultures many similarities can be seen as these cultures are closely related to one another. At first, the Romans too were under Greek dominance, and so many attributes of Greek culture can be seen in Roman culture. In finding the major difference between these two cultures is that the Byzantine culture is an offshoot of the Greek culture. Greek culture is more deeply knit than the Byzantine. In the later period, Roman culture was easily come out from the cultural bondage and embraced Christianity.

The religious imagery of the Romans was reflected in their acceptance of Christianity in the later periods. People may have different religious outlooks as the experience of each and every man to the different culture is different. Religious outlook takes place on a person’s exposure to religious beliefs most often by his or her parents. How a person sees things is responsible for making a religious outlook of that person. In studying the Roman and Greek cultures a person understands how religion, culture, and beliefs are closely related, and how these are responsible for making the person is easily understood.

Architecture and city planning as political or cultural expression:
In considering the major monuments of Egyptian and Roman traditions it can be said that both are representing their political expression. If the famous Pyramids are taken into account all these presented the political system of the period. Moreover, they are the expression of their culture. The Romans too are proud of their monuments. Even though a person can have grounds to doubt the paintings and sculptures of Romans, their architecture of them is beyond any skeptical mind. The Roman vaults are highly praised by all the cultures in the world. The monuments reflected their cultural and political expressions. In the case of Egyptian monuments, it is said. “The other major association called forth by the Egyptian style was that of “the land of Wisdom and Mystery” (Carrott 133). In analyzing the major difference between Roman and Egyptian monuments it can be said that the monuments of Egypt were rather for the needs of the ruler whereas the Roman monuments had a larger mileage. The Roman style of building was spread across the world very soon as it had much applicability. In the case of city planning too political reasons play a vital role. In constructing a city or building the ruling government’s interests are taken care of. The Great Sphinx of Giza, one of the most famous monuments of Egypt was constructed to support the political norms of the then ruling kings. The Roman public monument Colosseum was built for the political reason of celebrating Roman victory and it was the place where many assemblies were taken place. To sum up it can be found out that each monument or a planned city is built for cultural and more precisely political reasons.

Images of leaders and concepts of political power:
Leaders are the spokespersons of a culture. In considering the Mesopotamian leaders, it is said in history. “Mesopotamian leaders attempted to colonize and conquer distant regions. By the mid-third millennium BC, Mesopotamian military power must have had few equals.” (Dani477). The Sumerian kings of Mesopotamia converted the agricultural kingdom to urban civilization. The leaders of each and every country carry the political flavor of the people. In the case of the Roman civilization, the leaders had a strong influence over the subjects.