Marcus Aurelius, the philosopher-emperor whose Meditations remain a cornerstone of Stoic thought, fathered a son who would become one of Rome's most deranged rulers. Commodus ascended to the imperial throne in 180 AD at the age of eighteen, and for the next twelve years he would drag the dignity of the Roman Empire through the bloodied sand of the Colosseum's arena floor.
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Ghosts & Curses·2/3·1′
The place
Colosseum
Commodus the Gladiator-Emperor
The emperor who descended into the arena — and into madness
Roman Imperial Period (180-192 AD)Colosseum
Moral of the Story
“Power without virtue becomes madness, and the arena that entertains a people can also reveal the depravity of those who rule them.”
Characters
E
Emperor CommodusM
Marcus AureliusM
Marcia (concubine)N
Narcissus (wrestler)C
Cassius Dio (historian)Source
Cassius Dio, Roman History LXXIII; Herodian, History of the Empire; Historia Augusta, Life of Commodus