Until recently it was thought that the majority of people were illiterate in ancient times.[19] However, recent work challenges this perception.[20][21] Anthony DiRenzo asserts that Roman society was "a civilization based on the book and the register", and "no one, either free or slave, could afford to be illiterate".
This is interesting, giving a new perspective that literacy is more dynamic, exemplified by the Roman society that requires its citizen to be literate