This is a story about a lesser-known aspect of our Roman inheritance. The founders looked to the Romans as an ideal for their own republican aspirations: institutions that tempered the excesses of the populus; statesmen like Cicero who projected an unflinching defense of the Republic; and stories that described their own experiment of strangers fleeing from their homes to carve out a new community from the wilderness. But the United States also inherited another aspect of Rome that grew out of these rugged, founding stories. It was not the enlightened, republican body but the gladiatorial body that emerged as a rival conception of what an American looks like. The gladiatorial body, which received prominence in outlawed, bare-knuckle boxing, as well as the theater, was physically imposing, violent, anti-intellectual, and brash. This talk takes us inside the worlds of the gladiator and bare-knuckle boxer to understand their allure as images of the citizen body.

Join us in Room 125 of the Kelsey Museum’s Newberry Hall to hear from Dr. Dean Hammer, the John W. Wetzel Professor of Classics and Professor of Government at Franklin and Marshall College. Light refreshments will be available.

This lecture is being presented in connection with the Kelsey Museum’s temporary exhibition, “‘There Are in America, No Kings, Princes, or Nobles’: Caesar, Cato, and Washington,” and the University of Michigan’s Democracy Week—a campus-wide initiative designed to highlight the importance of democratic principles, participation, and civic empowerment. Funding for this event was provided by the U-M Initiative for Democracy & Civic Empowerment.

“They Wanted Cicero, They Got Gladiators” is free and open to all visitors. If you have any questions or concerns regarding accessing this event, please visit our accessibility page at https://myumi.ch/zwPkd or contact the education office by calling (734) 647-4167. We ask for advance notice as some accommodations may require more time for the university to arrange.