'The Roman games were cruel and degrading and cannot be justified.' How far do you agree with this opinion?

There is no doubt that cultural and social understanding was very limited in the era of the Romans. Ethics, animal rights and punishment had not been developed strongly enough to make assertive judgements about the games that provided so much entertainment for the bloodthirsty society. I believe that the Roman games were cruel and degrading, but the communities at the time accepted them as amusement, encouraging solidarity amongst the masses. Before the Colosseum was built …

…community, but at what cost? TOTAL WORDS: 934 Bibliography A103 An Introduction to the Humanities, Block 2: The Colosseum, The Open University, Bath, 2003 A103 An Introduction to the Humanities, Resource Book 1, The Open University, Bath, 2003 A103 An Introduction to the Humanities, Block 2: The Colosseum, The Open University, Cassette AC 23333 A103 An Introduction to the Humanities, The Open University, TV 5 A103 An Introduction to the Humanities, The Open University, TV 6 http://depthome.brooklyn.cuny.edu/classics/gladiatr.htm