... watching the munera, it seems likely that the Romans became somewhat desensitised to the bloodshed. Although it is a fictional account, a character from Petronius" Satyricon gives us an account of a member of the lower class, Echion who presents himself as an unsympathetic, unfeeling man. He expects "a grand show", a "do or die" affair with "bloody butcher's meat" for the audience to "feast their eyes ... Gauls. And so it is hardly surprising that the mob would be unrelenting in cheering for their death. These mock battles were intended to inspire the Romans, to face honourable wounds an...

• Word Count: 2845
• Approx Pages: 11

... some way or another. After narrowly escaping death, Nat goes around the house to make sure that he has properly boarded the windows. Outside the birds were trying their best to enter the house: scraping and tapping away. Nat was frantic to protect his family and decided that he could not take the risk of ... on their own. Their supplies were running out and so Nat goes to the farm with his family. The birds had gone now and were waiting on the tide again. When they got to the farm, Nat knew what he would find and so would not let his family go with him into the Triggs" house. He goes in...

• Word Count: 4431
• Approx Pages: 18
• Grade Level: High School

... had to provide, in order to maintain his popularity and his job. Emperors themselves had to attend the shows. Emperors watching the shows were distinct, vulnerable, and subject to public pressures which could not be displayed elsewhere. That was why the games were not popular with a few rulers such as Marcus Aurelius. He directed that if a gladiator was freed as a result of popular ... . The Gladiator in Society The reputation of gladiators in the eyes of the public was curiously mixed. For one thing they were feared. Society was never able to forget for very long that the gladiators wer...

• Word Count: 3227
• Approx Pages: 13
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School