The Roman people were a overly proud and highly .
religious people, whose sense of identity as .
romans came primarily from their accomplishments .
in war and their respect of their ancestors. By .
examining Livy's The Early History of Rome, we can .
identify these traits through roman patterns of .
behavior and the foundation myths that their .
nation is built upon. .
The romans repeatedly display not only an .
overdeveloped personal sense of pride, but an .
exceptional pride in their nation - taking .
precedence over even family loyalty. The first .
example of this Roman pride is seen in the very .
first foundation myth of Rome, the tale of Romulus .
and Remus. The second of the two versions of this .
story tells how after the auspices have indicated .
Romulus as the rightful leader of this new nation, .
"Remus, by way of jeering at his brother, jumped .
over the half-built walls of the new settlement, .
whereupon Romulus killed him in a fit of rage, .
adding the threat, "So perish whoever else shall .
overleap my battlements( P.40 Livy) ."" Not only .
do we see a foreshadowing of Rome's violent nature .
in this tale, but it seems to indicate a strong .
belief in the superiority of this ( barely .
existant ) nation, one that necessitates a .
national pride of greater magnitude than the even .
the strength of the loyalty between brothers. .
This kind of loyalty to country, as displayed by .
the Rome's founder, certainly sets a precendent .
for later roman citizens. Not surprisingly then, .
we see this same kind of pride with similar .
consequences later on following a battle between .
Rome and the Albans. The victory had been .
decided, not by a full scale war, but by a contest .
between three men from each country ( two sets of .
three brothers ). This contest left Rome .
victorious and five people dead - only one roman .
brother stood living. The victor returned to rome .
carrying the "triple spoils" and,"slung across [ .
his ] shoulders was a cloak, and [ his sister ] .
