Script:
Good morning everyone. I was disappointed that we didn′t have enough time to finish our discussion yesterday . . . and well, I′m not sure we′re going to really have time for it, but I really want to return to Rome . . . not literally, of course. But I do want to speak more on the public baths in ancient Rome. It′s such an interesting topic to me because they played such a big and surprising role in the culture of ancient Rome that . . . well, let me just get right into it then.
I guess it wouldn′t hurt to talk for a moment about exactly what these public baths were. Well, the history of these baths is actually quite interesting. The public baths were privately owned. They were basically just a business like any other. The owners of the bathhouse would charge a fee for entrance. However, once the Roman government saw that the bathhouses were so popular and beneficial, they opened large ones all across the city. They weren′t just for cleaning one′s self, they were places for conversation, relaxation, uh, and even enjoying art. Any questions so far?
Moving on, the role of public baths is quite interesting. They actually formed a very large part of Roman culture. Today, uh, you know, bathing is just something that we do for the sake of our hygiene, and while the advent of public baths did lead to the, uh, to better Roman hygiene, it also became an essential part of the daily lives of the citizens. But, well, the hygiene thing is important, but it′s kind of obvious, so I don′t want to talk too much about it.
More importantly, people would spend all day socializing at the baths. So, really, the baths were much more of an entertainment activity than anything. And the people really loved it. There′s an old story that says that when a Roman was asked by a foreigner why he bathed once a day, he responded by saying, “because I don′t have time to bathe twice a day.” So the baths were, well, just a part of daily Roman life.
The baths also included areas that the Romans called palaestrae, which were large fitness areas. They were very much like modern gyms. Some of the largest palaestrae would have areas for running, for playing ball games, for wrestling, for lifting weights . . . um and even larger pools for swimming. Now, this was another great source of entertainment for the Romans and gave them yet another reason to spend all day in these baths. It also contributed to better health among the citizens and helped make them more physically fit.
Last, and perhaps most interestingly, the baths served an important political role. Because they were so widely frequented, politicians hoping to gain support would often visit the baths and share their ideas with the population. Groups of politicians would meet in the baths to discuss laws, policies, or possible ways to improve Roman society. Politicians hoping to gain support often paid the admission for an entire day at a bath in order to gain political support from the visitors. Commoners would discuss politics as well. They might discuss the candidates for an election, or debate laws . . . or even use the baths to plot against a politician.