The Case of Lucretia - Symbolizing the Political Reality

Abstract

The myth of Lucretia, the wife of Collatinus, raped by Sextus Tarquinius – the son of the last Roman king – is very influential in the Classical and Medieval literature, likewise in the Modern times in the different fields of science and art. Its pristine form is now lost in the distant past and it is possible to compare the sources to see several layers of its political, legal, and ethical interpretation. Following these elaborations, we find a history of different legal institutions and rhetoric argumentation. However, with the help of archaeological findings some elements of its historical image starts to appear being the model family values and religious beliefs built in the foundation of common cultural forms in Italy.