After Carthage in 201 BC, the Roman Empire embarked on a dangerous period where all gladiatorial fights were all the rage. The article "Murderous Games: Gladiatorial Contests in Ancient Rome" by Keith Hopkins, discusses the fighting and how it was used for entertainment purposes; where war was considered “fun”. And at that time, the Roman Empire consisted of 50-60 million people, or a fifth to a sixth of the world's population. The Roman Empire was a warrior state where animals and people were sacrificed. People of all backgrounds were sacrificed for funerals and entertainment purposes. In this analysis I will discuss their purpose, the animals involved, and Rome's present from that period onwards. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The purpose behind gladiatorial combat was pure entertainment. Rome was a cruel place where people were used for dangerous malpractices. At that time, gladiator fights were acceptable in their eyes, but in today's society they are considered unethical. People worshiped gladiators as if they were pop stars. They were famous and considered the greatest characters in Rome; they were considered heroes by the public. People also supported gladiatorial fights out of fear, and if they opposed them, they soon found themselves faced with the same dilemma as the gladiators, death. And when people went to the arena as an audience, and once there were not enough criminals to sentence to death, so instead they killed a crowd of people by feeding them to wild animals. The emperor was the only person who made decisions. He made this decision because, sometimes, things didn't go the way he wanted. On many occasions, the public objected and asked for favors, such as reduced taxes, food, or the execution of a different person. But sometimes the people who shouted went to the consequences. During this period of time, the emperor made decisions and people's lives were in his hands. Even animals were involved in this cruel activity which was a sport. A large number of animals were used for entertainment and then put to death. Some of the many animals involved included elephants, ostriches, lions and more. Criminals, animals, slaves, and other people were put into arenas to fight, and many of them did not survive; in reality no one comes out alive. In one day, 3,000 people fought (including men and women) and 5,000 animals were killed in the arena. This shows how large the arena was, which also included more space to accommodate 50,000 people. One of the greatest spectacles was the spectacle created by Emperor Trajan to celebrate his defeat against Dacia. The fight lasted 123 days; with 9,138 gladiators fighting and 11,000 animals killed. Subsequently the emperor began to introduce more animals; animals such as crocodiles, rhinos, giraffes and tigers. At some point, the amount of hippos began to decrease more and more until one was brought from Europe via steamer from London. It seemed that wild animals had declined in that time period due to the enormous amount of fighting. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a custom essay Rome has changed since those time periods, making it an important part of history. People of all backgrounds were killed - criminals, slaves, Christians and even people from the mob - and for the emperor's entertainment. Rome was a cruel society where cruelty was a way of life. The people..