Roman gladiators were ferocious and glorified pit fighters whose main purpose was to entertain the masses. It is important to note that violence and brutality at the given period might have been a norm. Although such an activity can be considered barbaric and savage according to modern values, it is highly similar to MMA and boxing. The latter examples do not involve murder and extreme suffering, but they do involve violence as a source of entertainment. It might be due to the fact that conflict and fighting tap into people’s primal human nature. However, similarly to modern fighters, gladiators were not heroes, but rather entertainers.
Roman gladiators can be considered as a reflection of what future societies will think of modern fighting championships, such as UFC. The majority of people do not spend time evaluating whether famous MMA experts, such as Conor McGregor or Mike Tyson, are violent and brutal individuals. On the contrary, they are perceived as celebrities, and some may even consider them as heroes. However, it is critical to understand that actual heroes are individuals who make big sacrifices for others. According to the latter definition, a fully committed surgeon would be more of a hero than any boxing celebrity.
In addition, Roman gladiators were not heroes, but a mere source of entertainment, because they did not fight in order to defend their nation from outside threats. In this regard, ordinary Roman soldiers and army men were the heroes of the Roman empire. Some Roman citizens might have glorified gladiators and perceived them as heroes, but the fact is that heroes sacrifice to protect and advance the interest of their own kind.