Gladiators: Heroes of the Roman
Amphitheatre Section
A A Today, the idea of gladiators fighting to
the death, and of an amphitheatre where this could take place watched by an
enthusiastic audience, epitomizes the depths to which the Roman Empire was
capable of sinking. Yet, to the Romans themselves, the institution of the arena
was one of the defining features of their civilization. Hardly any contemporary
voices questioned the morality of staging gladiatorial combat. And the
gladiators’ own epitaphs mention their profession without shame, apology, or
resentment. So, who were these gladiators, and what was their role in Roman
society Section B B
The Romans believed that the first gladiators were slaves who were made to fight
to the death at the funeral of a distinguished aristocrat, Junius Brutus Pera,
in 264 BC. This spectacle was arranged by the heirs of the deceased to honour
his memory. Gradually gladiatorial spectacle became separated from the funerals,
and was staged by the wealthy as a means of displaying their power and influence
within the local community. The number of gladiators to be displayed was a key
attraction: the larger the figure, the more generous the sponsor was perceived
to be, and the more glamorous the spectacle. C Most
gladiators were slaves. They were subjected to a rigorous training, fed on a
high-energy diet, and given expert medical attention. Hence they were an
expensive investment, not to be despatched lightly. When a gladiator died in
combat, as compensation, the trainer might claim up to a hundred times the cost
of the gladiator who survived. Hence it was very much more costly for sponsors
to supply the bloodshed that audiences often demanded, although if they did
allow a gladiator to be slain it was seen as an indication of their generosity.
Mosaics from around the Roman empire depict the critical moment when the victor
is standing over his floored opponent, poised to inflict the fatal
blow. Section C D The
rules were probably specific to different styles of combat. Gladiators were
individually armed, but paired against each other in various combinations, each
combination imposing its own fighting style. Some of the most popular pairings
pitted contrasting advantages and disadvantages against one another.
E Combat between the murmillo ("fish-fighter", so called from the
logo on his helmet) and the thraex was a standard favourite. The murmillo had a
large, oblong shield that covered his body from shoulder to calf; it afforded
stout protection, but was very unwieldy. The thraex, on the other hand, carried
a small square shield that covered only his torso, but wore leg-protectors that
came well above the knee. So the murmillo and his opponent were comparably
protected, but the size and weight of their shields would have called for
different fighting techniques, contributing to the interest and suspense of the
engagement. The most vulnerable of all gladiators was the net-fighter
(retiarius), who had only a shoulder-guard on his left arm to protect him. He
customarily fought the heavily-armed secutor who, although virtually
impregnable, lumbered under the weight of his armour. Being relatively
unencumbered, the net fighter could move nimbly to inflict a blow with his right
hand using his trident at relatively long range, throw his net over his
opponent, and then close in with his short dagger for the fight.
F Not that all gladiators were right-handed. A disconcerting
advantage accrued to the left-handed; they were trained to fight right-handers,
but their opponents, unaccustomed to being approached from this angle, could be
thrown off-balance by a left-handed attack. Left-handedness is hence a quality
advertised in graffiti and epitaphs alike. Section
D G The occupants of the gladiatorial barracks changed
frequently, as troupes toured the local circuit. Some gladiators survived to
reach retirement; new recruits were enlisted, many of them probably unable to
understand Latin. In the larger barracks, members of the same fighting style
lived with their own dedicated trainer, and they often bonded together in formal
associations. H Yet gladiators must frequently have met their
close colleagues in mortal combat. Professionalism and the survival instinct
would have demanded a merciless display of expertise, inculcated by the
gladiator’s training. Within a training school there was a competitive hierarchy
of grades (paloi) through which individuals were promoted. The larger barracks
had their own training arena, with accommodation for spectators, so that
combatants became accustomed to practising before an audience of their fellows.
The system meant that combat and heroic prowess were brought right into the
urban centres of the Roman empire, whereas real warfare was going on
unimaginably far away, on the borders of barbarism. Section E I There were some dissenting
voices. The philosopher-emperor Marcus Aurelius found gladiatorial combat
"boring". Both pagan philosophers and Christian fathers scorned the arena, but
they objected most vociferously not to the brutality of the displays, but to the
loss of self-control that the hype generated among the spectators.
J Despite the dissent, gladiatorial displays were red-letter days
in communities throughout the empire. The whole spectrum of local society was
represented, seated strictly according to status. The combatants paraded
beforehand, fully armed. Exotic animals might be displayed and hunted in the
early part of the programme, and prisoners might be executed by exposure to the
beasts. As the combat between each pair of gladiators reached its climax, the
band played to a frenzied crescendo. K Above all,
gladiatorial combat was a display of nerve and skill. The gladiator, worthless
in terms of civic status, was paradoxically capable of heroism. Under the Roman
empire, his job was one of the threads that bound together the entire social and
economic fabric of the Roman world. Not even Spartacus, most famous of all
gladiators, has left his own account of himself. But shreds of evidence, in
words and pictures, remain-to be pieced together as testimony of an institution
that characterized an entire civilization for nearly 700 years.
Questions 14-17 Reading Passage 2 has five sections
A-E. Choose the most suitable headings for sections B-E from
the list of headings given. Section A has been done for you as
an example. Write the correct number, i-ix, in boxes 14-17 on
your answer sheet. List of Headings
i Fighting left-handed ii Religious support for
gladiatorial combat iii Behind the scenes: the professional
structure iv Different ways of fighting
v Spartacus in Ancient Rome vi Criticism and
popularity vii About the gladiators themselves
viii Attitudes to gladiatorial combat then and now ix How
gladiators were trained Section E