Who refused freedom

   After the film ’Gladiator’ (also for more than twenty years) emerged a very schematic idea of gladiators. The visual culture strongly influenced our idea of warrior slaves. Muscular warriors, types of weapons, fights, crazy admiration and cheering of the audience, and the grace of a thumb decides life and death. Fearless warriors who saw everything and more, yet nothing can jerk them out of sexy indifference with which they face their doom. But who are they really? Names, famous fights, stories. But do we see the man behind what is happening?

  Spartacus became famous for the uprising he incited. But we know almost nothing about what a warrior he was. If he had continued to fight in the arena, how long would he have lasted? Did he become a good fighter just because he was forced to fight a lot of fights during the uprising? No, he was probably a good fighter  and even a good organizer, a real leader.

  Another gladiator is known for his tombstone. His name is Flamma, who literally fought for himself material independence, prosperity and freedom. According to the inscription on the tombstone he lived for thirty years, had thirty-four battles, of which he won twenty-one, he had tie fight battle nine times (both fighters wins) and lost four times and he was of Syrian descent. He fought in a secutor style, his opponent was the retiarius. The retiarius had very little protective gear but in return light and fast. The secutor was heavily armored and carried tons of metals, so secutors had to be very strong men. The twenty-one victory is a record, and even on the occassion of the four losses the audience seems to have spared his life, because didn’t want to lose their favorite. He may have been very popular, as the Roman people enjoyed watching the death of a proud warrior. With so many victories, he could make quite a bit of money. Enough money to buy his freedom, that is to free himself from slavery. But he never did so, every time he was offered a wooden sword symbolizing freedom (calles rudis), he didn’t accept it, but returned to the arena. What could have motivated him? Why did he choose the gladiator life? Why did he take the danger over and over again? He will never answer these questions.

  According to his tombstone, he died at the age of thirty, but it doesn’t turn out that he lost his life during the fight or was killed by a pneumonia, or perhaps he was struck by a car (or a chariot, I mean). All we know about him is that he kept his opponents in the arena in awe for thirteen years. It was a very long time in this profession. He was only seventeen, when he became a gladiator. He lived most of his life as a gladiator. As a slave. As a celebrated star, an audience favorite. He didn’t ask for leave. The tombstone was set for him by an another gladiator. There was nothing left but an inscription. And an immortal legend.