Resumen de Roma(na) Matrona
In the Bellum Civile, Lucan in part draws his three major characters by illustrating their relationships with women. Cato and Pompey appear with their Roman wives, where Caesar appears only in an illicit relationship with the foreign Cleopatra and while rejecting the apparition of Roma at the Rubicon. This article will demonstrate that Caesar's repudiation of Roma is emblematic of his rejection of Rome, Roman womanhood, and Romanness, in contrast to Cato and Pompey, whose devotion to their wives echoes their devotion to the doomed res publica. The poet develops this scheme by identifying Roma and the republic with the virtuous Roman matron.
