Gladiatorial Rituals essays

Gladiatorial Rituals essays Gladiatorial contests hold a central place in our perception of Roman behavior. They were also a big influence on how Romans themselves ordered their lives. Attending the games was one of the practices that went with being a Roman. The Etruscans who introduced this type of contest in the sixth century BC, are credited with its development but it is the Romans who made it famous.(Adapted from Tacitus) A surviving feature of the Roman games was when a gladiator fell he was hauled out of the arena by a slave dressed as the Etruscan death-demon Charun.(Quennell p.44) The slave would carry a hammer which was the demon's attribute. Gladiators of Ancient Rome lived their lives to the absolute fullest. Gladiatorial duels had originated from funeral games given in order to satisfy the dead man's need for blood, and for centuries their principle occasions were funerals. The first gladiatorial combats therefore, took place at the graves of those being honored, but once they became public spectacles they moved into amphitheaters. (Dining p.83) As for the gladiators themselves, an aura of religious sacrifice continued to hang about their combats. Obviously most spectators just enjoyed the massacre without any remorseful reflections. Even ancient writers felt no pity, they were aware that gladiators had originated from these holocausts in honor of the dead.(Adapted from Martial) What was offered to appease the dead was counted as a funeral rite. The ancients thought that by this sort of spectacle they rendered a service to the dead, after they had made it a more cultured form of cruelty. The belief was that the souls of the dead are appeased with human blood, they use to sacrifice cap tives or slaves of poor quality at funerals. Afterwards it seemed good to obscure their impiety by making it a pleasure. (Hopkins p.170) So after the acquired person had been trained to fight as best they can, their training was to learn to be killed! For such reas...

How to Move Up Retail Career Ladder Without College

How to Move Up Retail Career Ladder Without College Huge numbers of young people at all levels of education currently work in the retail industry- tons of Millennials between the ages of 19 and 30 work in retail sales positions,  often starting at a low hourly wage right out of high school. If you find yourself on the bottom rung of a retail career and would like to advance, here are a few strategies to get yourself to the next level. 1. Know where you’re going.You can’t make real progress without a target in mind. Have an idea for where you want to end up. What’s your career goal? Then start taking steps to get there. Direction is a good and grounding thing. Observe the people you work with and learn from them: what are they doing that you like? Can you ask them to help you get to where they are? Find a mentor and follow his or her advice.2. Find the right company.Find a place to work where you can reasonably expect to achieve your goals. Take extra care to pick a company you genuinely like, whose business prac tices mesh with your ideals. It’s much easier to demonstrate your passion for work if you can muster up some genuine enthusiasm for where you work.3. Consider a degree.Most stores don’t require a degree for an entry-level sales position, but you might need some postsecondary training (at least) to advance beyond sales and get anywhere else you want to go in your field. Consider an associate’s degree in retail management, with courses in accounting, conflict resolution, or business communication. You might even consider a bachelor’s degree in Economics, if that’s viable for you.4. Think management.Research jobs in retail management and devote yourself to acquiring the skills you’d need to be considered for those positions. Start tweaking your resume to emphasize your leadership expertise and strengths. Look around for companies that are looking to expand and are likely to have management openings for a hungry striver such as yourself.5. Impre ss your boss.If you constantly prove yourself to be an asset to your supervisors, and you constantly make her look good with your performance, then you’re well on your way up. Put in the extra work to impress who you need to be impressing. Be open to feedback and constructive criticism. Ask for advice on what might be holding you back and how you can improve and grow. Go above and beyond.6. Know your value.What do you bring to the table that your co-workers or competitors don’t? How can you show yourself to be an asset to a company- either where you are now, or where you’d like to be? Figure that out and then figure out how to communicate it in a job interview or annual review.7. Keep at it.If you know where you want to go, and what you need to do to get there, then the battle is half won already. Persist in your pursuit. Keep learning and pushing yourself. Keep paying attention to what others are and aren’t doing. Your level of commitment will determine how fast you advance.