Roman Gladiators Essay

A gladiators life was far from easy. Most were slaves, prisoners of war, or hardened criminals, therefore they were not free men. Often times they were trained and forced to take part in the events, hoping for their freedom if

Gladiators are seen as fighters or warriors of the colosseums in Rome; however not as slaves or prisoners. Most gladiators were captured and prisoners of war who were later sold to owners, but are referred to as managers. These managers would turn prisoners into gladiators who were hungry for wins to survive. Wins brought life, food, women, and amenities that the gladiator could dream for as a free person.

Most of the gladiators were criminals or prisoners of war that were forced to fight in the arena. Although they were considered slaves, they surprisingly had a better standard of living than most lower class Romans. Because they were financial investments, they had access to doctors and medicine, better food, and exercise. As the gladiator became more and more popular, he would attract greater crowds, making him more valuable, which led to getting him a better lifestyle. For this reason, some free citizens, aristocrats, and even emperors would join in hoping to increase their own wealth. Even slaves would train and fight hard because they could purchase their freedom once they accumulated enough wealth.

Rome had many great things, especially within their love of brutality. Many of the Roman people enjoyed to take a break from their hard, ancient, lives and watch some grown men battle people, lions, tigers, and bears to the death (oh my!).

This is actually factual as for gladiators were actually trained under their managers, tested and marked for purchases. The purposes of a gladiator were not to fight in wars or battles but to battle against each other, animals and beasts solely for public entertainment in the ancient Rome. The portrayal of gladiators’ status in the Roman society as well as their roles for bloody thirsty and violent entertainment in the film is displayed true to the ancient Rome.

Thesis: The period between the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars can be considered the Golden Age of Athens. It was the golden age because Athens thrived in multiple characteristics of an empire. Context:

Gladiators and Charioteers in Ancient Rome are brought up and trained in different ways. The gladiators, for example, could either be prisoners of war, criminals, or free men . However, “The taint of becoming a gladiator essentially took away one’s free status, even from those who entered the profession voluntarily. One could say that all gladiators were slaves” (Futrell 125). Being as everyone is essentially a slave, free men becoming gladiators would have to sign an agreement giving away their rights to choose. This wasn’t something that you would see happen in the realm of chariot racing. Although, both were still considered infamis essentially meaning they did not enjoy the rights of citizens.

Athens was located in the region of Attica, a fertile valley and rich in minerals. The city was a cultural powerhouse: the cradle of democracy, the birthplace of many great philosophers, of politics, of architecture and theatre, of history, science and mathematics, with a formidable naval fleet that defeated the Persian army. Athenians had access to education and freedom to pursue their interests in war or business. (Mark, 2011)

Most of the time gladiators fought in arenas but sometimes the ruler forced others to fight. Gladiators had the opportunity to regain their freedom but it was nearly impossible. For a gladiator to gain back their freedom, they had to survive 5 years of fighting (5 to 10 fights in total) when only a few made it out of one fight alive. If a gladiator won, along with their freedom, they would get laurels, money, donations from the crowd and a rudis which was a wooden sword which allowed you to become a gladiator trainer. The gladiator’s fights were roman

Despite being brutally beaten and tortured, gladiators were rarely killed for they were loved by many, sometimes even battling at funerals of the rich. The gladiators lived a painful and oddly ironic life. Even though gladiator battles were so glorified in ancient Rome, most gladiators did not have a choice in the matter of becoming a part of them. The majority of gladiators were slaves, with a good few prisoners of war mixed in to the bunch. Gladiators were held in rooms of about 32 square feet, mostly living in sets of two per room.

Work, discipline and feeding are three words that would perfectly sum up the daily routine of slaves in ancient Greece. Slaves were the backbone to the greatness, strength and stability to the ancient Greeks, according to Aristotle. Being divided into many different city-states, Greece as a whole contained a variety of social structures, and therefore, a range of positions occupied by slaves. Slavery allowed the citizens of Athens and also Sparta to focus on the aspects of life they thought were important. Most slaves did not appear any different from the poorer Greek citizens, therefore making it much more difficult for historians to determine exactly how many slaves there were during these times. Ascertaining a true understanding of

There were a number of Roman laws regarding slavery, and these too, changed over time. In the Republican period, slaves had no rights and were always subject to the whims of their owners. They did have some legal standing, however. They were allowed to act as witnesses in trials, and could gain freedom either through their owner's gratitude after loyal service or by buying it through the meager earnings they might collect over a lifetime of service. For example, owners in the Republic had the right to kill or mutilate slaves at a whim, but later imperial laws took this right away, though in practice this law could be largely ignored. This represents how valued slaves were to the Roman people.

Throughout this section I was exposed to what it was like to live during ancient times. Something that stood out to me was that Athens had the first democracy, the form of government we use today in the United States. It’s amazing to me, to see once again how the past has shaped our future. Luckily, not everything is the same as it was in the past and the world has further progressed as, in Athens women were not treated as equal to men and slaves were used.

Slavery in the Greek society was based on one’s social status. Most of the slaves were prisoners of war, people from other tribes, and people

Adding onto the point where slaves were put on the market like things, slaves were also discriminated due to their previous nationality. Both of these actions illustrate inhuman behaviour by the Ancient Romans. In addition to buying and selling slaves, there is one more option which tops off these poor choices. In Ancient Rome, one was also able to rent a slave. This is renting a human being. Renting tools or horses was ordinary but renting another person just exemplifies how Romans treated slaves as things, rather than people.