If Walls Could Talk: A Case Study at Pompeii (thesis)

Abstract

Building upon the work of Bettina Bergmann, who shows the critical importance of memory in the creation and reception of Roman domestic painting, I will explore the complexity and multivalence of Roman collective social memory. As we move into the postmodern era, many classical art historians have begun to emphasize the many ways of encoding, seeing, and understanding, especially those that have occupied a peripheral status in historical analyses. I will explore the formal and thematic aspects of these paintings in order to better understand the nuance and intricacy of their subject matter and interaction with memory. I will investigate the presentation of binary threads for the sake of intellectual and mnemonic reflection among visitors, as well as the creation of a uniquely Roman narrative regarding love, loss, violence, and fate. Finally, I will propose that rooms four, five, six, and fourteen all served as pinacothecae rather than their traditional attributions of bedrooms or cubicula. Moreover, I propose that the active use of these galleries was one of the primary motivations for their creation. (From introductory section)