BREAD & CIRCUSES (PART 1)
Audio
The poet Juvenal famously wrote:
The public has long since cast off its cares; the people that once bestowed commands, consulships, legions and all else, now meddles no more and longs eagerly for just two things: bread and circuses.
(Juvenal, Satire 10.80 f., trans. A. Bell, in E. Köhne, ‘Bread and Circuses: The Politics of Entertainment’, in E. Köhne, C. Ewiglebe and R. Jackson (eds), The Power of Spectacle in Ancient Rome: Gladiators and Caesars, London: British Museum, 2000, p. 8).
This podcast is the first of two that give some information about 'Bread and Circuses' at Rome. In Part 1 we talk about the origins and development of 'bread and circuses' at Rome. The text is taken from S. Kershaw, A Brief Guide to Classical Civilization, London: Robinson, 2010, pp. 331- 335, and is read by the author. http://www.constablerobinson.com/?section=search&search_term=civilization
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