Reply To: Romans Among Us

[Tamara Toy]

Architecture is the first thing that comes to mind when I think about the influence of Roman on modern day culture. For instance, the Temple of Portunus and the Alaska State Building share several common features. Four tall columns, with stairs leading you in, making you look up to anyone that may be on the highest level. While the State Building isn’t in Ionic style, it still gives this feeling of age, wisdom, and a bit of intimidation. Roman architecture tends to have this feeling of opulence, of this grandness that we tend to copy in a majority of governmental buildings. Another place I see that we bring a bit of the Roman culture into modern life is in sports. The gladiator fights were brutal and highly popular. Today, we tend to try to have the same feeling, without the brutality that was popular then. Football is violent and can be brutal, hockey is brutal as well, and with both, most fans love a good hit or fight. In other words, not that much different than the days of the Coliseum, just a tad less bloody.