Was Caligula as bad as thought?

Actually, if you look at some poetry, you can see that there was an understanding of Lesbians (in the modern sense). It's just that there isn't much of it left, because few people cared to preserve the writings of women. Especially when they didn't understand. It is a very common misconception to state that it didn't exist, or that it is a cultural thing. Where I was raised, the whole concept wasn't even mentioned, but even I knew that I fell in love with women. Homosexuality is an inborn trait, that occurs in all cultures. There might not have been full understanding of everything, by the general public, but the feelings were certainly there.

I don't think there was ever a thought that the feelings weren't there. Same-sex relations have existed since our ancestors were swinging from the trees (and exist among the great apes and monkeys, among other animals :D )

Just what was the nature of the understanding of lesbianism? From some stuff I've heard (usually quoted by lecturers), the issue most people had with male homosexuality was the worry that it would make men less inclined to do their duty by their wives. Lesbianism, by contrast, was generally treated with a rousing attitude of 'who cares' because, well, what women did wasn't important as long as they didn't have children who weren't their husband's.

Apparently, that's the attitude that pervades in modern-day Saudi among the wealthy - according to one book I read, while male homosexuality and adultery/fornication between men and women always result in death when found out, lesbianism is quite often ignored in the circles of the ruling class. It doesn't result in children, there's no question of 'male honour' involved, etc.

There was even a case in northern Germany in the middle ages by church authorities condemning two women for 'unnatural relations' but they were found innocent as the Bishop presiding over the trial couldn't understand how they 'conducted relations' and they were subsequently accused of witchcraft instead. Though the Bishop threw that out and let the two women go.

Interesting...
 
May I modestly ask who these scholars are? Based on Cassius Dio, I would assume that Elagabal was a transgender. I mean, a god can change his gender, but Elagabal did/wanted far more than simply changing his gender.

Sure : a very good book is "emperors and senators", written by Roman (it's his last name).

I thought you knew you just can't take at face value most antic sources. I don't mean all they report is wrong, but when it is not wrong it is often misinterpretated.
 

Gaius Julius Magnus

Gone Fishin'
Probably not since the sources we have on him aren't exactly looking to be objective with him. But he probably wasn't a very good Emperor all things considered.
 
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