By Julia Fennell ’21
When most people think of a Classics course, they might picture a professor lecturing on Roman architecture or students studying ancient Greek texts. At CC, however, things are done a bit differently. From Denver Nuggets games and touring on-campus entertainment venues to trying on gladiator gear, students in Roman Sports and Entertainment spend the block connecting Roman sports and entertainment to the modern world, as well as analyzing its social-political context.
In this course, Dr. Sanjaya Thakur, Judson Bemis Professor of Humanities and Professor of Classics, ensures that students both learn the important history of the Roman world, as well as connect that history to forms of entertainment and sport today.
Students in Roman Sports and Entertainment learn about gladiatorial games, beast hunts, mock naval battles, and chariot racing, as well as theatrical entertainments, like ballet and pantomime. They study the similarities between Roman entertainment and modern-world entertainment. Students also consider the social status of the entertainers in the Roman world, and how that impacted the perception of them and the entertainment in general.
