초록 열기/닫기 버튼
The central theme of Seneca is that the crowd is dangerous. Therefore sensitive and hence easily influenced persons who are not yet firm enough in their adherence to what is right are to be kept away from the broad mass of the people, since one easily betrays oneself and sides with the majority. In order to illustrate how dangerous crowds are, Seneca uses his experiences at the arena, where he had happened to go at noontide to relax and enjoy himself. But what he saw was obviously mere executions without any refinement at all. Moreover, the spectators preferred this butchering to the ordinary fights. It is to be noticed that Seneca does not pity those executed. They were robbers and murderers and deserved to be punished. Seneca is only concerned about the spectator, who had not deserved such a spectacle. There is still a reason for the Stoic Seneca to be favorably disposed towards especially gladiatorial shows. The highest good, virtue, cannot be reached without suffering and hardships such as illness, pain, poverty, exile, or even death. To Seneca these things are the features of gladiators. Therefore, Seneca was not an opponent of gladiators and gladiatorial games, but had the positive attitude about ones. To Juvenalis a target of attack is the rich sons of pimps, auctioneers, gladiators, and trainers who loudly demand the front seat reserved for equestrians at the arena. For Juvenalis social mobility is in itself a cause for indignation. His attitude stems from an aristocratic ethos, an ethos which emphasizes the innate superiority of those of high birth. In essence Juvenalis is reproaching the aristocracy of his day for not displaying the proper morals to defend its position against the upstarts. His attack against the aristocracy is therefore wholly consistent with his contempt of the parvenu. He attacked also the lascivious women who volunteer as gladiator and lust after gladiators. Therefore, Juvenalis was not a critic of gladiators and gladiatorial games.
키워드열기/닫기 버튼
Seneca, Juvenalis, gladiatorial games, satire, arena
