Roman sports and entertainment essays

Roman sports and entertainment essays Entertainment and sports have always been important in every empire. In the Roman times it was vital to their empire. Romans really invented the sports that our civilization uses every day. Not every one could afford these great games and shows so a leader that went by the name of Augustus created bread and circuses. These were the same events as the other games but free and included a free price of bread. Augustus realized that the plebeians vastly outnumbered the patricians and equestrians. He immediately noticed that he was making the plebeians happy. Although people thought that he was buying them off such as when Tacitus said, Through the sweetness of leisure Augustus seduced one and all. he gained a lot of power because people liked him more. These events were said by Augustus to make sure Romans were fed and entertained to ensure peace. Roman people tried to enjoy their life a lot more intensely than our civilization. It really shows that making entertainment accessible to the poor made him loved by all. Gladiators were the most popular event for Roman entertainment. Gladiator fights were usually a fight to death although not always. The gladiators wore 3 different types of clothing. One type were the fighters were covered in armor and had a sword or spear. The second type was when they only had a shield and sword with a loin cloth and thats it. The last type was a loin cloth a helmet a net and a three pronged spear (Retiarii). They sometimes fought against other people and sometimes fought against animals and rarely they would mix the two. The fighters were usually slaves or captives gained from war. It was almost impossible to win but when it happened they had to do it again the very next day. Freedom was won if you were good but usually the good fighters came back and did it again just for justice. When a man versed a beast it was a usua ...