Due to the lack of scientific knowledge, many people at that time, considered the eruption as the condemnation from the god. Elaborate religious activities were held to show that the eruption was no because of wrath of god, and various methods were adopted to help distribute imperial propaganda (Alex 309). He built The Arch of Titus to show Romans that Rome was favored by the gods. Deities could be seen on the sculpture, serving and aiding Roman leaders (Vasta 135). A sculpture on the arch, Winged Women, represented victory flutter in the spandrels, and symbolized that the divine victory would always be on Rome's side (Vasta 135). Propaganda was a commonly used and effective tool to influence the thought and attitude of the society toward important things. Augustus used propaganda to get himself recognized by people and show that he was an international military victor (Fischer). If people believed the eruption was caused by the wrath of god, very likely, they would feel scared and get into real panic. When people feel anxious or afraid of something, they were less likely to spend money on entertaining or enjoying, and more severely, turmoil would be likely to fall across the empire. .
Secondly, personally, showing his "paternal affection", Titus responded to the disaster in a very compassionate way. He selected two ex-consuls to the damaged region for restoration and to provide compensation for victim families and survivors (Suetonius). Also, he even donated his own money to clean up and reconstruct part of the surviving cities, and visited the disaster zone many times within the year (Downes). What Titus did not only did minimize people's dissatisfaction toward the destruction of the city, but also established his premium image among Romans, and made them believed that their country would always stand behind them no matter what happened. So in this way the eruption brought harmony and satisfaction to Roman Society.
