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To: neb52

There were stories at the time that Caesar was gay. Read Suetonius. Most likely they were made up by his political opponents in order to discredit him (like some nowadays claim that Hillary was a big lesbian) but still, it's not something just invented yesterday.


28 posted on 09/04/2005 8:58:17 PM PDT by SpringheelJack
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To: SpringheelJack

Hhhmm thank you for the referrence. I know contemporary authors have put forth Caesar and King Nicomedes of Bithnyia, but I hadn't read anything having to do with his nephew.


29 posted on 09/05/2005 7:14:20 AM PDT by neb52
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To: SpringheelJack

You're right that the stories were probably made up. And I don't want to nitpick, but the use of the word 'gay' is not appropriate in that it brings to mind the current connotations of a certain lifestyle. The ancient Greeks and Romans had no such understanding of it. And of course Caesar's heterosexual desires are a thing of historical fact, not conjecture.

A certain kind of homosexual behavior was seen as acceptable under certain conditions, but at the same time there were laws against homosexuality in ancient Greece and Rome. The fact that the rumors about Caesar's alleged homosexual behavior as a boy or young man were used as a negative by his enemies seems to be lost on those who point to it as evidence of ancient support for homosexuality.


40 posted on 09/27/2005 1:43:06 PM PDT by Aetius
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