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In response to
"think of it this way...."
by
Andie
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Firstly, not a large urban center. Rather, a small town of about 5,000. Secondly...
Posted by
Mop (aka rburriel)
Mar 24 '12, 07:04
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...if that town had the opportunity to produce an athlete of great acclaim and fame, wouldn't every kid in that town want to aspire to this greatness? Wouldn't they have posters on their walls and action figures and trading cards? Wouldn't they WANT to be the next tribute?
The more accurate parallel - even moreso that professional athletes - are gladiators in ancient Rome. Not all of them were slaves driven to fight (and even those who did were trained heavily... See: Sparticus). Gladiatorial battle was a means to fame, fortune and freedom. You can't argue that slaves had it easy, but some still opted to become gladiators to earn their freedom.
Mop
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