Vote Lollio as aedilem; the mat makers ask for it. Pedagogical notes on the political posters of ancient Pompeii

Abstract

In addition to boredom and in addition to the disgust for the barbarization of language and the superficiality of reasoning, the so-called permanent electoral campaign that characterizes political current affairs leads to a general miseducation of all citizens regarding the meaning of the elections. Despite this deleterious crushing on the present of politics and all its nuances, it is worth remembering that suffrage and propaganda have traveled, with mixed success and tortuous upheavals, all of European history. A precious and incomparable trace of this long and controversial story is the so-called political manifestos of ancient Pompeii, wall paintings of the scriptores that, between 62 and 79 AD, urged voters to express themselves on their magistrates. The tituli picti of ancient Pompeii offer us an opportunity to reflect on the original dimension of politics and the electoral phenomenon which, bon gré mal gré, is intrinsic to our education for citizenship.

Keywords

• tituli picti
• campagna elettorale permanente
• educazione alla cittadinanza
• storia europea
• antica pompei