Developing a Line of Inquiry: Assignment Two Planning

List some ideas/areas of interest that really stood out to you about Assignment One. In other words:
why this particular area of interest, what stood out, why does it interest you, what lines of inquiry might
you like to pursue etc?

Gladiators quest for glory in the Colosseum
Fighting and death in Roman society
Importance of popularity for gladiators
What it took to be a gladiator
What did it take for a gladiator to get the wooden sword?
Injuries that gladiators obtain
Survival


List some search terms you intend to try using: Google Scholar, UNCC Library Databases, NPR, and
YouTube. You must select at least one library database to use.

Importance of popularity for gladiators
Obtaining the wooden sword
Gladiators quest for glory
Gladiators survival in the arena
Ideal gladiators



Search Terms Sources I Can Access Based on These Search Terms
Strategies for Gladiators A Note on Cooperative Strategies in Gladiators Games, Jrme Ballet,
Damien Bazin, and Radu Vranceanu 2013
Ballet, Jrme, Damien Bazin, and Radu Vranceanu. "A Note on Cooperative
Strategies in Gladiators Games." Games 4, no. 2 (2013): 200-207.

Assignment One, Zach Esposito, 2014 page 1-11

Guide to Gladiator fight training , BBC History, YouTube

Gladiatorial Diet

The Gladiator Diet, Andrew Curry, 2008, page 28-30


Training roman gladiators

Gladiatorial Combat with 'Sharp' weapons, Michael Carter, 2006, page 161-175
Gladiatorial Combat: The Rules of Engagement, M.J. Carter, 2006 page 97-114

Gladiator Training, National Geographic, 2010

Importance of popularity for
gladiators

Gladiatorial Ranking and the "SC de Pretiis Gladiatorum Minuendis", Michael
Carter, page 83-114
OMalley, Meghan. "Gladiator Games: Defining the Romans." HIST (2008).




Obtaining the wooden sword

Not enough information was found to make a good research paper
Gladiators quest for glory

OMalley, Meghan. "Gladiator Games: Defining the Romans." HIST (2008).





Thesis:
This paper traces the history of gladiatorial training and winning strategies; more specifically we will
examine historic practices in preparing for an event and then we will suggest modifications in their lives
in order to get the best results in the arena and the perfect ideal gladiator.











Introduction:

A battle worn man looks up from the blood soaked ground to see fifty thousand fans shrieking his name
all around him. The man is coated in blood from the man he just slew and appears to be grinning from
ear to ear, even though his own body appears to be cut. As we looked more closely at the man, we see
that he is early twenties with scars all over his body and it quite fat for his age. Additionally, we can see
that this man is very skilled with a sword because all he got from the fight was a cut on his left arm while
the man he fought had his stomach slashed open. As the man starts to walk out of the arena, we can
clearly make out his name to be a famous roman gladiator.
Gladiators were slaves or captives of war from the many Roman campaigns. At the very beginning of a
gladiators life they would have to swear loyalty to the Lanista. As he trained, he would be accessed to
see if he was worth putting in the arena. Once in the arena, a gladiator fought until he lost or was told to
stop. If a gladiator continued to win then he could make a name for himself and live a very success life.
Gladiators came in all shapes and sizes but all of them had one thing in common, they had to win to
survive. With each new piece of literature about gladiatorial training and winning strategies, we will
examine historic practices in preparing for an event and then we will suggest modifications in the
gladiators lives in order to get the best results in the arena and find the perfect, ideal gladiator.
Before going through the body of works regarding the ideal gladiators, it is important to know my stance
on the subject. As a fan of the current cinemas depicting gladiators, the gladiatorial fights that end in
death have always appealed to me because those were the ones that were the most exciting to watch in
movies. Similarly, my fixation with the roman time period has lead to me agree with their practices
concerning showing bravery and bloodlust in the arena because to them death is always present in their
lives and it is never to early to gain fame. So to me the ideal gladiator might be a little more gruesome
than what others believe. However, as I agree with the way professional gladiators dealt with their pride
in the arena, I do not agree that non-professionals or slaves were forced in the arena because many
times they didnt want to fight. Even though I dont agree with the slaves and non-professional
gladiators in the arena, it is still my personal interest and passion to find out using different gladiatorial
training and winning strategies what modifications could be made to make the average gladiator into an
ideal gladiator.




Citations: Strategies for Gladiators

Jrme Ballet, Damien Bazin, and Radu Vranceanu A Note on Cooperative Strategies in Gladiators
Games, 2013
Jrme Ballet, Damien Bazin, and Radu Vranceanu argue that the strategy for survival in the area is
nothing like what cinema shows us today. Instead they said the best strategy for the arena was to be
less lethal because the professional gladiators knew that in order to gain fame and money they had to
continuously win and survive; furthermore, if they didnt kill the losers then others would be less likely
to kill them if they ended up losing. What is most fascinating about what Jrme Ballet, Damien Bazin,
and Radu Vranceanu said is that professional gladiators had to balance putting on a good show for the
people and finding out if their opponent believed in killing over riches.
Worldwide, BBC. "Guide to Gladiator Fight Training - BBC History." YouTube. January 1, 2008. Accessed
October 3, 2014.

BBC History shows how the gladiators were trained so they had the most success in the arena. Many
times the gladiator were trained so their movements and swordsmanship were flashy so they could
stand out from others and by distinguishing themselves from others people would pay to watch them
because he was most fun to watch. Additionally, if a gladiator had a unique fighting style and was always
victorious that combination would almost certainly lead them to freedom because no one else could
entertain the masses like he did.

Diets for Gladiators

McGowan, Andrew. "Discipline and Diet: Feeding the Martyrs in Roman Carthage." Harvard Theological
Review, 2003, 455-76.

McGowan talks about how normal Roman captives were treated and fed in Roman society. Preceding
the gladiators, captives were feed next to nothing and they were forced to live a in a disgusting cell;
nonetheless, once the worth of gladiators were seen this soon changed to a heavy grain diet and nicer
clean cells where they could sleep. This transfer to better living accommodations and food was later
used in the Lanista when they were established.

Curry, Andrew. "The Gladiator Diet." How to Eat, Excercise, and Die a Violent Death, 2008, 28-30

Curry starts off with telling us that gladiators ate a diet that was high in carbohydrates. The diet included
more plants and less animal protein and this was designed for the gladiators to help them pack on the
pounds. The extra weight was so when the gladiators were cut there was less of a chance that a major
artery was hit because the extra fat would protect it. This maybe a good choice for a winning strategy
but this would affect their social lives much more; for example, since they are bigger they must consume
much more food and alcohol than normal romans causing a dip in the social status because of all the
trouble they cause to care for.

Training Roman Gladiators

Carter, Michael. "Gladiatorial Combat with 'Sharp' Weapons." 2006, 161-75.

Carter explains how not all gladiatorial combat had weapons that could kill the opponent. Sometimes
gladiators were given weapons that were blunted on the sides and had a pointed end just so blood
could be drawn. The idea behind this was the crowd could see a good fight and the gladiators could be
put in danger of losing their lives. This act of blunting the blades without the crowd knowing had nothing
but benefits to the gladiators social life because they look like the real thing but the gladiator actually
knows that they cant be harmed; moreover, this style of fighting, however few that did it, had the safest
way to become famous in Rome.

Carter, M.J. "Gladiatorial Combat: The Rules of Engagement." 2006, 97-114.

Even in the arena, there was a code or rules of engagement the gladiators had to know and follow. A
major gladiatorial rule was that the fight ended when one winner was clearly established and the loser
has surrender. At this point the winner would be known for his victory and the loser would either be
killed or releases if he had a good fight. The gladiatorial rule that helped the gladiator social life was the
wounds and death were not apart of the show; however, a show of excellence swordsmanship, bravery
in the face of death, and discipline were and if this was all done the gladiator would become an idol to
everyone.

Geographic, National. "Gladiator Training." YouTube. January 1, 2010. Accessed October 3, 2014.

National geographic paints a picture of a trained killer that was envied, scorned and even lusted after.
Gladiators were trained almost like roman soldiers but unlike the soldiers would fought to solely to kill,
the gladiators had to be showmen when they fought. Since they were showmen their training was to
make their style different from others so the crowd knew who to cheer for and this would help make a
name for themselves.