This paper fit as a final project in the Fall of Rome course. We were expected to write a research paper on a topic relating to the Roman Imperial Period which interested us. I was very interested in the overlap of Christianity and the Roman Empire, and further specialized the paper to focus on the effects both the Roman emperors and Christianity had on slavery legislation. I think this item is successful as I think I wrote it very well and my interest in the subject comes through in the writing. I discuss the ethnic and social issues of slavery at the Roman Imperial Period and how stoicism and Christian norms impacted attitudes towards slaves. I used both primary and secondary sources to get first-hand writings on treatment of slaves and scholarly analysis of the cultural intersections at that time. This item of my portfolio helped me to fully realize the interdisciplinary nature of Classics and gave me a chance to explore that to the fullest extent. I further developed my writing skills in addressing cultural perspectives and their effects. If I could redo this item, I think I would work on making the title more concise and adding more evidence to my discussion of stoicism and its impact on slavery.

The title of the paper is: “How did the treatment of slaves change during the Roman imperial period, and at the introduction of Christianity as the imperial religion?”. The introduction of Christianity to the Roman Imperial Period was a tumultous time. This paper discusses legal changes and societal changes towards slavery throughout this time.