User talk:Scoughla/sandbox

Review of Proposed Edits
The addition to the sub-section, Roman Republic, I think could be clarified. Specifically, the sentence, "The quaestor was traditionally bound to the consul on a permanent basis, and even though the consul and quaestor may be officially separate, any aggression between one another was considered disrespectful and distasteful," was not immediately clear to me. I think it would be useful to provide a distinction between what it meant to be "permanently bound" to a consul, yet "officially separate". I see the point that is being driven, but this piece of the paragraph could use clarification. The description of this relationship is outlined well in the Powers and Responsibilities section.

In the section, Notable Quaestors, I would suggest taking the leading sentence and placing it in the article summary - I think it is an important note that is relevant for the entire article and not just this section alone. The work done in this section on Gaius and Marcus is well done and substantiated with frequent and credible sources. I am assuming that formalized citations and accompanying footnotes will be added, but I'll suggest their addition in case that was not an obvious next step.

-- Trinity2017 (talk), Sam Johnson

Peer Review: Article Improvements
Hi,

With regards to your article improvements, I have a few comments.

This relationship between a consul and a quaestor was similar to that between a patron and a client. The quaestor was essential a client to their superior. There was some level of mutual respect between the two individuals, but a defined sense of place and knowledge of each others roles. This relationship often continued past the designated terms of either individual, and the quaestor could be called upon for assistance or other needs by the consul. Breaking this pact or doing harm by a former superior would make the quaestor seem dishonorable or even treasonous.[4]

Your addition to the Roman Republic section of the Quaestor is certainly helpful in gaining a more well-rounded understanding of a Quaestor's place on the path Cursus honorum, and that relationship between the superior and the newcomer is interesting. However, I think it can be a little more articulate and expanded upon. "This" should be "The" in the first sentence, a minor typo, but that opening sentence is vague for readers that might not know what a patron client relationship is. Maybe you can link patron, or even Patronage in ancient rome so that readers, if need be, can quickly explore those terms and gain a better understanding. When you say "There was some level of mutual respect between the two individuals, but a defined sense of place and knowledge of each others roles," how so? I think your source is good and can be drawn upon to help you expand that sentence and make it less-vague. Again, this may be just another issue of expressing the relationship better as mentioned above in the earlier section of your addition to the article.

I think the additional sections you've added of "Notable Quaestors" and "Powers and Responsibilites." However, when describing the Powers and Responsibilites of the quaestors, you mention how when the quaestors increased to 4, two maintained their financial duties and two more engaged in additional duties. Finding a source or information on what the additional duties were for the other two quaestors would make the sentence more credible and less of a vague statement. Especially because the article discusses the differences in responsibilites and powers of quaestors when they were increased to 4, 10, and 20, so I think it would be helpful to maybe have a section where you talk about the differences or changes in quaestor roles with the changes in number of quaestors. As you drew from Plutarch's biography for your example of the office of the quaestor, I think you can find a better source that could not only give an example but talk about the office of the quaestor more in depth as it seems that's the topic sentence of your paragraph there. I think it's a good idea to include some notable quaestors during the time and use a reference link to them, as readers will be able to further explore the quaestor in the era of the Roman Republic and see some contrasts and similarities between quaestors and how they acted in different times as well as their responsibilities.

Jon Pacilio (talk) 20:04, 25 April 2017 (UTC)