P. T. Barnum: The Greatest Show On Earth

Early gladiator fights took place in funerals of wealthy Romans, but their main purpose was to give the people a good show. As the gladiator games grew in popularity, the funeral ritual tradition was eventually dropped and the games were staged for what they were—a display of wealth and entertainment for the masses. By approximately 90 B.C., gladiator games began taking place in circuses and forums. Circuses were elongated arenas with a spine down the middle, designed for chariot racing. In a circus, the audience had good seats but a poor view of the event. Since circuses were built for chariot races, their long and narrow shape made it difficult for someone sitting on one end to see an event going on at the other end. A good example of a circus is the Circus Maximus. This structure was the first and largest circus built by the Romans and it could hold up to 250,000 people. Forums were open gathering places in the center of a town, often with a monument in the middle. Audiences watching a gladiator event in a forum still experienced problems because the ground was flat, so only the people in the first few rows could see anything. Over the years, the gladiator games became even more elaborate to the point where some fights included fights with wild animals. So the Romans now had a problem on their hands: how to fit a large number of people in a way that let them see everything that was

The amount of risk that the circus performers have to deal with on a daily basis is flat out remarkable. They look a death and danger and smile like its nothing to them. Only a special group of people to have enough courage, or as some might say “stupidity” to do this line of work and love it. But the greatest thing of all about them is that they don't care how dangerous something is, if they think they can do it, they will do what ever it takes to accomplish it. We can all learn from that kind of

P.T. Barnum was a famous circus owner. He help create the Ringling Brothers & Barnum and Bailey Circus (Kent,133). He called his circus the “greatest show on earth”. Barnum had a five ring circus but all the other circus had three rings. His biggest attraction was Jumbo the elephant.

The Night Circus written by Erin Morgenstern depicts the tale of two lovers bound by a challenge that forces them to compete against each other. It was a romantic tale, from which the reader can develop a strong sense of emotion with the two lovers. In this novel, Morgenstern uses the character Bailey to demonstrate the ideas of love, passion vs obsession and standing up for yourself. Love is a very influential idea in the story, without it Bailey wouldn’t have taken over the circus. However, Bailey’s obsession with the circus makes him abandon his family.

During this time period, there was little to no regulation of the circus crew or the animals. This was the situation in a Water for Elephants. To top it all off, the show was owned and operated by a money hungry and cruel person, who would do anything to save money such as not paying the workers, not feeding the workers, not giving the exotic animals proper care and the list goes on. But in the circus, the audience seem to buy into the performer's deceptions. The audience is completely oblivious and are deceived by this circus, but in reality the circus is not as perfect as they make it

In the 1900s, circuses were extremely popular and prevalent in the west. During the downfall of the circus industry, “wealthy industrialists and professionals who loved the circus formed the Circus Fans Associations…whose motto, “We fight anything that fights the circus,” summed up its philosophy” (Pfening 24). Ironically, it is proven that “the last twenty-five years of the nineteenth century was the apogee [or the climax] of the American circus” (Pfening 5). People were attracted to the charismatic spirit of the circus during the anguish and despair that came along with the Great Depression.

I really enjoyed going to the circus as a child but, I never knew how it was planned out. After reading my novel I’m surprised at how many problems a circus faces, even though it’s such an exciting place.

After the golden years known as, The Roaring Twenties,the U.S experienced the greatest economic crisis in human history known as the Great Depression.People struggled just to get by,actors especially .The Federal Theater Project (FTP), was a government funded program to help struggling performers find work.Though the idea of such a program was revolutionary,it failed, and ended a few years after its creation. The FTP ultimately didn’t establish what it set out to do.

You May Not Know About P.T. Barnum’) Phineas Taylor Barnum created the world famous Three Ringed Circus. “ With his help, the “Swedish Nightingale” became an overnight sensation. Barnum reportedly netted a staggering $500,00 on tour, and Linds popularity helped make opera a mainstay in American Theatres,” claimed Andrews. There were social, economic,and cultural influences on Phineas Taylor Barnum which affected his lifetime achievements.

The circus has been around for many years, but in recent years the circus has been getting a bad rap. The most famous circus in the United States, which started under the big top, will be closing after a amazing 146 year run. Barnum and Baily will be closing due to animal rights activists, which fought them in many expensive court battles that ending their world famous elephant acts. For a long time, the circus was a dream for kids to have fun and watch the impossible be done. The first cirus were in Europe, but Americans gave their spin on them which included collapsible tents, so they can move on the go.

According The Wall Street Journal” … Cirque du Soleil, the Canadian company that redefined the dynamics of a declining circus industry in the 1980s. Under conventional strategy analysis, the circus industry was a loser. Star performers had “supplier power” over the company. Alternative forms of entertainment, from sporting events to home entertainment systems, were relatively inexpensive and on the rise. Moreover, animal rights groups were putting increased pressure on circuses for their treatment of animals.” (Murray, 2014) A new era was created transforming the concept of what is a circus today. As the Wall Street Journal described, “Cirque du Soleil eliminated the animals and reduced the importance of individual stars. It created a new form of entertainment that combined dance, music and athletic skill to appeal to an upscale adult audience that had abandoned the traditional circus. (Murray, 2014)

Circus is a travelling show that is often performed in a tent that includes trained animals, clowns , acrobats and other stunts performers. All of these performers needed to practise hard and as best as they can to make the show run smoothly , safetly and entertaining. As if they make a mistake, it could ruin their performance in any ways.

The life of a circus animal is hard and demanding. It is not an acceptable way of life for an animal. Circuses would quickly lose their appeal if the public were more aware of their mistreatments of these animals. Many circuses do not have much money and as a result the animals suffer from inadequate care. These animals spend most of their time in small cages used for transportation. The Animal Welfare Act provides cage requirements, but many circuses fail to follow this law. Even the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey circus was cited for 65 violations over a two-year period according to Florence Lambert. When traveling, animals spend hours, even days between sites in confinement..

Animals have been a main focus in circus performances around the world for many centuries; however, in recent history, there have been far more regulations put on the use of these creatures, stemming mainly from how they are treated by both their trainers and the circus as a whole. Whether it be on the federal or local and state-level, there has been a definite increase in the questionable legality of America’s circus industry due to the neglect and abuse of the participating animals, courts’ decisions highlighting the true importance of the issue. These rulings make one ask the question: What types of regulations could be put in place in all circuses to ensure that the animals involved are not abused in the process? In the end, many

The Circus has been an extremely popular form of entertainment during the 20th century. The circus creates an image of drifters and dreamers in the mind. In the 20th century the emphasis on spectacle continued on 3 ring formats.