| When I was a child in the 1970's my family and I | | | | positively that a real Roman would talk about his many |
| watched an extremely popular television show called | | | | virtues. |
| "To Tell the Truth". The game consisted of three | | | | Another quality that our real Roman challenger would |
| challengers who all pretended to be the same person | | | | disclose to us is the idea that a Roman is "fortis" or |
| with the same occupation, experiences, etc. Then a | | | | "strong". A real Roman would relate his "fortitudo" or |
| celebrity panel asked the three challengers various | | | | "strength" to our celebrity panelists. An important note |
| questions to try to deduce which of the three | | | | here is that the idea of Roman strength includes but |
| challengers was the real person named at the | | | | goes beyond the mere meaning of physical strength. |
| beginning of the show. The two imposters made up | | | | For example, the English word "fortitude" means a |
| answers as they were questioned to fool the celebrity | | | | "strength of mind that enables a person to meet |
| panel into thinking that one of them was the real | | | | danger or bear pain or adversity with courage". |
| person. At the end of the show, the celebrities voted | | | | According to Janson, an example of true Roman |
| for the one they thought was the real person - and | | | | fortitudo can be related to an actual Roman who failed |
| not an imposter. After the number of votes for each | | | | in an attempt to assassinate an Etruscan king. When |
| challenger was announced, the show host would say | | | | he was brought before this king the Roman |
| with dramatic fanfare, "Will the real (name of the | | | | announced proudly, "Romanus sum" - I am a Roman. |
| person) please stand up?" Then the actual person | | | | The Roman captive then put his own hand into a fire in |
| stood up to reveal that he is the actual person, and the | | | | front of the Etruscan king and kept it there "until it had |
| challengers were given money awards based on how | | | | burned to charcoal". It is recorded that the king abruptly |
| many incorrect votes they had received from the | | | | ended his present battle with the Roman people after |
| celebrity panel. Of course, everyone at home was | | | | witnessing such a display of Roman fortitudo. So |
| mentally casting their own votes to try to guess who | | | | another clue about the identity of the true Roman |
| the real person was as well. That was half the fun of | | | | would come from his personal claim to great "fortitudo" |
| watching the show - to see if we were smart enough | | | | or strength. Some English derivatives from the Latin |
| to identify the real challenger. | | | | "fortis" or "fortitudo" include the words: fort, forte, |
| I had not even thought of the "To Tell the Truth" game | | | | fortissimo, fortitude, and fortress. |
| show for more than twenty years until I started to | | | | Let's move on to another important Roman quality. |
| write an article that would likewise identify and | | | | According to Janson, a true Roman challenger would |
| elaborate upon what is believed to be the real | | | | also be identified easily by his belief in "ius" or "right |
| character of a typical Roman. I imagined that one of | | | | justice". Above all, he would want to be viewed as |
| the challengers in my lineup was a real ancient Roman | | | | "iustus'" or as a "just" person. The Roman male's idea |
| male and that the other two imposters were maybe a | | | | of being just or fair was often combined with one of |
| Greek and an Egyptian from long ago. Then I thought | | | | the other previously mentioned Roman traits - that of |
| about how each of the challengers would answer the | | | | being a "vir fortis et iustus" or a "strong and just man". |
| celebrity panelists to try to present himself as a | | | | Janson cites one extreme example of Roman justice |
| genuine Roman. What ideas would each of the | | | | when he relates the story of a Roman consul whose |
| challengers state as being important to a Roman as | | | | son showed great courage in killing a Roman enemy. |
| they answered the celebrity panel? What are the | | | | However, the story goes that the consul had his own |
| eternal basic qualities that would help us identify the | | | | son executed because he had ordered that "acts of |
| Roman among imposters? | | | | war" were forbidden during the time that his son had |
| One of the most important and frequently used ideas | | | | killed the enemy. Some English derivatives from the |
| styled by the Romans about themselves in the Latin | | | | Latin "ius" (right justice) or "iustus" (just) include the |
| language comes from the Latin word "virtus". The | | | | following words: just, justice, justifiable, justification, and |
| word virtus in Latin means "manliness, courage, virtue". | | | | justify - to name only a few. |
| It comes from the Latin word "vir" which means "man". | | | | A final note now that we are near the end of our "To |
| According to Janson in his book "A Natural History of | | | | Tell the Truth" real Roman challenge. According to |
| Latin", the word virtus for the Romans had "nothing to | | | | Janson, many of the examples of Roman morality, |
| do with sexuality, and means rather something like | | | | strength, and justice were recorded by Roman or |
| 'good qualities', namely those that a man was | | | | Greek authors who lived several hundred years after |
| supposed to have". Some of these excellent male | | | | most the so-called stories had taken place. Janson |
| qualities include providing for his family, having a sound | | | | also states that many such stories were "no more |
| work and business ethic, and respect for the gods as | | | | than fantasies, maybe with some foundation in reality". |
| well as for Roman law and persons in authority. | | | | He says about these Latin authors, "It was in their |
| Janson also states, "Virtus was seen as the best | | | | interest to emphasize certain characteristics of the |
| quality that a Roman could have." Although the word | | | | ancient Romans because they wanted to sway their |
| virtus originated in the Latin, it comes into the English | | | | contemporaries" and that the "conservative rulers of a |
| language indirectly from the Old French word "virtu". | | | | later period used the ancient Romans for their own |
| The English word "virtue" gets its meaning of "morality" | | | | purposes". In closing, perhaps we should have "tongue |
| from the French language. From the 13th century to | | | | in cheek" as the two imposters would also have as |
| the 16th century A.D. the meaning of the word virtu in | | | | they answered the questions the way a real Roman |
| the French changed from that of "morality" to | | | | would answer. After all is said and done, the "real |
| "excellent qualities" and then to "chastity and purity". | | | | Roman" challenger would be identified most easily as |
| Some English derivatives of the Latin word virtus | | | | the only one who was able to answer the questions |
| include: virtue, virtuous, and virtuosity - just to name a | | | | truthfully and with a "straight face". So - Will the real |
| few. As far as being able to identify our true | | | | Roman please stand up? |
| challenger from among the imposters we can state | | | | |