11. Study Questions (23/24) Copy
Plautus and Terence in the second and third centuries BCE, both comic writers influenced by the Greek playwright, Menander. Roman tragedy existed too, influenced by the Athenian playwrights of the 5th century BCE, but the only ones surviving to us are from Seneca, writing in the first century CE.
Surviving texts seem to indicate that theatre was much less popular than mass sporting events, such as gladiatorial fights, chariot racing, and staged animal hunts. It is best to treat these sources with caution, as they are generally scathing of public tastes for ‘unsophisticated’ public spectacles.
This is a typical essay question that you may get. There are a range of possible responses here, but however you answer, you must always give a balanced response, and make use of any evidence to support your points.
Theatre
Smaller venues, so a more intimate experience
No (real) deaths or violence
Culturally enriching for those who admired Greek culture
A range of types of plays (give examples)
Possibility of unusual actors appearing eg Nero
BUT:
Our main sources are textual and from Roman elite (explain why this may be a bad thing)
Amphitheatre
Lots of sources tell us how popular it was
Large amphitheatres attest to large numbers of spectators
Graffiti of gladiators shows its popularity with ordinary people
Lots of exotic animals to see
Violent events exciting for audience
Sometimes emperors fought in arena eg Commodus
BUT:
May have been not to everyone’s tastes
Crowded with possibility of crush accidents
No real written evidence to suggest what ordinary people thought
Gladiator games put on by the rich and powerful, so perhaps everybody had to pretend they liked it
