Warriors and Poets

0

Length0:03:38

Views: 5639

iPod HD

Creative Commons Attribution 3.0  License Embed
Embed Options

Embed:
Copy and paste the above html snippet to embed this video into your blog or web page.

Select a size:
  • Normal
    426 x 240
  • Large
    640 x 360
Colosseum, Rome's Arena of Death
0:00:18
Check out this excerpt from a BBC documentary.

Jump | More
Greco-Roman
0:00:29
Want to find out what Greco-Roman culture is?

Jump | More
Roman Theatre (structure)
0:00:36
Want to learn more about Roman theatre?

Jump | More
The Kings
0:00:47
Who were the first kings of Rome?

Jump | More
Gladiator Trailer
0:00:54
Watch Russell Crowe in fine fighting form in the trailer for the film Gladiator.

Jump | More
Rome
0:01:06
Tons of information on the beautiful city of Rome.

Jump | More
Get to know Juvenal
0:01:17
Everything you ever wanted to know about this Roman poet.

Jump | More
How many people does Yankee Stadium hold?
0:01:25
Click to find out.

Jump | More
Define: anomalous
0:01:40
If you know the definition, well done. If not, check it out.

Jump | More
Circus Maximus, Rome
0:01:46
Want to learn more about Circus Maximus?

Jump | More
Ben Hur - The Chariot Race
0:01:59
An excerpt from the film Ben Hur, featuring great chariot races.

Jump | More
Lucius Annaeus Seneca
0:02:12
Learn more about the playwright, orator and philosopher, Seneca.

Jump | More
Louvre Museum Official Website
0:03:11
Check out the Louvre's website.

Jump | More
0 / 13

Channels: Ancient ArtExhibitionsRoman Art

Whether you love gory fights or sophisticated poetry, fast-paced races or open air theater, the Roman spectacle had something to offer every entertainment-seeker. Find out what kept the ancient Romans on the edge of their seats.

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
CAPTCHA
Are you for real? Please answer this challenge to prove you're not a spam bot.

00:00:27 The spectacle was a part of Greco-Roman culture, and we can see this because the physical plant, if you will, the spectacle in theaters, amphitheaters, stadia, are even in moderate-sized towns.

00:00:40 Back in the early days of Rome, and this is early days when Rome is ruled by kings before it even becomes a Republic, there is a tradition of honoring men with a fight to death between slaves.

00:00:53 But it became very popular throughout Italy by the Republican era. It was really one the most central attributes of this culture, and I should stress its greatest examples were in the city of Rome.

00:01:05 These were fights that were not always to the death. What was more important was that the Gladiators put on a good show.

00:01:13 Today they hold shows of their own and win applause by slaying whomsoever the mob with a turn of their thumb bids them slay.

00:01:22 The Colosseum could hold 50,000 to 87,000 people. Consider what went on in the Colosseum is it wasn't just about sport and Gladiatorial combat,

00:01:32 but it was also about showing the might and even the technology of the Roman Empire.

00:01:39 It was very important to maintain this anomalous population, perhaps a million people.

00:01:45 The Circus Maximus was an oval for chariot racing, and it could accommodate up to 250,000 people. They are constantly trying to outmaneuver each other

00:01:56 and people would get knocked out of chariots and get trampled to death and so there is just a brutal nature to both of these spectacles.

00:02:05 Behold an equal thing, worthy of a God, a brave man matched in conflict with evil fortune.

00:02:12 At least some element of Rome enjoyed the dramatic presentations; some element did, because they built so many theaters. But at those times the theater, actually, had to compete

00:02:22 with Gladiatorial combat. In terms of the public being able to see plays, they would often be staged either in the old Greek amphitheaters, which still survived, or outside temples

00:02:35 and some of this was very gruesome because, at times, they would stage scenes where someone would be crucified so they will take a prisoner who had been condemned to death and crucify them on stage.

00:02:47 The Romans didn't have a seven day week the way we do. They basically lived from festival to festival, so every three weeks, or so, there is going be, say a three day to a five or seven day festival

00:02:57 in which the spectacle was a part of. The Romans tended to take a good idea and take everything to excess and that's their whole thing was taking things to...they were very American that way, taking things to excess.