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Like the popular TikTok meme says about men, Paul thinks about Ancient Rome every 7 seconds. Stephen’s never counted but nonetheless our Chinwag hosts love to talk about the Roman Empire, and there’s one heralded scholar they’ve been wanting to meet: Professor Mary Beard.
Sure, Dame Mary Beard has debated former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, but now she enters the Chinwag! How much power did Emperors like Caesar, Caligula, Severus, and Nero, actually wield? And how much was just imagined? Hint: many Emperors weren’t even known by name back then! So how much of a role does our imagination play in our fantasies when recounting these legends? And what can these fantasies reveal about ourselves?
Also, what did Emperor Tiberius get up to in the swimming pool? (We’re asking you dear listener! Please write in and tell us - we never found out!)
But Paul and Stephen DO hear which Emperor suffocated his dinner guests with mounds of rose petals. Creative! And, where else but on Chinwag will you learn the hierarchy of the Emperor’s official food tasters? It’s all here!
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Vocab Word of the Week: PRAEGUSTATORES
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Unwrapping the Toga on Ancient Rome | Paul Giamatti’s CHINWAG with Stephen Asma podcast - Listen or read transcript on Metacast
