Description
Why did the Romans turn out in their tens of thousands to watch brutal gladiatorial games? Previous studies have tried to explain the attraction of the arena by theorizing about its cultural function in Roman society. The games have been seen as celebrations of the violence of empire or of Rome's martial heritage, or as manifestations of the emperor's power. The desire to watch has therefore been limited to the Roman context and rendered alien to modern sensibilities. Yet the historical record reveals that people living in quite different times and circumstances (including our own) have regularly come out in large numbers to watch public rituals of violence such as executions, floggings, animal-baiting, cudgeling, pugilism and so on. Appreciating the social-psychological dynamics at work in attracting people to watch such events not only deepens our understanding of the spectator at the Roman games but also suggests something important about ourselves.
Were the Romans who watched brutal gladiatorial games all that different from us? This book argues they were not.
About the Author
Garrett G. Fagan is Associate Professor of Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies and History at Pennsylvania State University, where he teaches courses in Roman and Greek history, Latin, and ancient warfare. He is the author, co-author or editor of four books including Bathing in Public in the Roman World (1999), Archaeological Fantasies (2006) and New Perspectives on Ancient Warfare (2010), as well as numerous scholarly articles.
Reviews
'A vivid phenomenological account of the games ... [a] well-informed book.' The Times Literary Supplement
'For industry, meticulous documentation of primary and secondary sources, cosmic view, and a good dose of common sense throughout, this is now unquestionably the best book on this repulsive but unavoidable subject. To adapt a famous though possibly apocryphal gladiatorial chant, Ave, Fagan, Imperator! Lecturi Te Salutant!' The Spokesman
Book Information
ISBN 9780521196161
Author Garrett G. Fagan
Format Hardback
Page Count 376
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 720g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 25mm
Were the Romans who watched brutal gladiatorial games all that different from us? This book argues they were not.
About the Author
Garrett G. Fagan is Associate Professor of Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies and History at Pennsylvania State University, where he teaches courses in Roman and Greek history, Latin, and ancient warfare. He is the author, co-author or editor of four books including Bathing in Public in the Roman World (1999), Archaeological Fantasies (2006) and New Perspectives on Ancient Warfare (2010), as well as numerous scholarly articles.
Reviews
'A vivid phenomenological account of the games ... [a] well-informed book.' The Times Literary Supplement
'For industry, meticulous documentation of primary and secondary sources, cosmic view, and a good dose of common sense throughout, this is now unquestionably the best book on this repulsive but unavoidable subject. To adapt a famous though possibly apocryphal gladiatorial chant, Ave, Fagan, Imperator! Lecturi Te Salutant!' The Spokesman
Book Information
ISBN 9780521196161
Author Garrett G. Fagan
Format Hardback
Page Count 376
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 720g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 25mm
