Spartacus (1960): History, Rome, and Cold War Allegory

Introduction: The Historical Spartacus

Spartacus was a slave famous for having led a revolt — known as the Third Servile War — against the Roman Republic from 73 BC to 71 BC. Born in Thrace, a region northeast of Greece, he was a member of a nomadic herding people and later served in the Roman Army (Sinnigen, 2003). Spartacus deserted the army but was captured and enslaved; the Romans then trained him as a gladiator to fight other gladiators and wild beasts in the arena for public entertainment (Sinnigen, 2003).

In 73 BC, Spartacus and other gladiators rebelled against Roman authority at the town of Capua, in what is now southern Italy (Sinnigen, 2003). The rebels took refuge on nearby Mount Vesuvius and soon organized an army of approximately 70,000 runaway slaves (Sinnigen, 2003). Commanded by Spartacus, this army defeated Roman forces and gained control over much of central and southern Italy (Sinnigen, 2003).

In 72 BC, the rebels divided into two groups: the Romans defeated one group in Italy, while Spartacus led the other to victory against a Roman army in Cisalpine Gaul, now northern Italy (Sinnigen, 2003). In 71 BC, Spartacus's army returned south, and it was during this period that Roman forces commanded by Marcus Licinius Crassus defeated the rebel army. Spartacus was killed in battle (Sinnigen, 2003).

The Film Spartacus (1960)

The 1960 film Spartacus is a historical epic representing the life of Spartacus, played by Kirk Douglas, and depicting the transition of Rome from Republic to Empire. The film was directed by Stanley Kubrick, adapted from the novel by Howard Fast, and released by Universal Studios in 1960. In the film, we first encounter Spartacus being trained as a gladiator by Marcellus, played by Charles McGraw, and falling in love with Varinia, played by Jean Simmons.

The narrative follows Spartacus as he decides to lead a revolt against the government of Rome and builds an army of slaves. Viewers are encouraged to see Spartacus as a great man guided by conscience — one who believes that all men deserve fairness and equality regardless of their position in society or their wealth. Meanwhile, the film cuts to Rome, where politicians and generals convene to determine how best to suppress the threat Spartacus poses.

The film traces the battles that follow and Spartacus's eventual defeat, concluding with his crucifixion at the hands of Crassus. In doing so, it covers one of the most significant transitions in ancient Roman history: the rise of the generals and the erosion of republican governance.

The Rise of Roman Generals and Political Factions

To understand the world in which Spartacus lived, it is necessary to trace the political turbulence of the late Roman Republic. In 133 BC, Gracchus, a farmer, was elected to the position of tribune in Rome and enacted laws — including land reforms — that were detrimental to the senatorial class. Although he was enormously popular with ordinary people, he was despised by wealthy landowners, and during his second term as tribune he was killed by a group of senators. This act ushered in a prolonged period of violence in Roman politics, during which further attempts to democratize wealth distribution were crushed by the Senate through battles and wars against reformers.

Historians formally identify this era as the moment when two distinct factions emerged in Ancient Roman politics: the populares, who pushed for democratizing policies, and the optimates, senators who sought to preserve the privileges of the wealthy.

In 107 BC, Gaius Marius, also a farmer by origin, was elected consul and designated by the Assembly to lead Roman forces in the war against the Africans — the first time a general had been elected to head an army in this manner, marking a significant milestone in Roman history. In 88 BC, Marius returned to Rome as leader of the populares following success in numerous campaigns, only to find that Sulla, head of the optimates, had assumed Marius's rightful position as consul. Marius gathered his troops and marched on Rome — the first time any general had done so — to reclaim his position.

Following this confrontation, Sulla was ousted and fled to Asia Minor. Marius seized control of the Senate. Sulla, however, soon returned to Italy as a self-proclaimed dictator and carried out executions against those he considered enemies. Marius went into battle against Sulla and died in the fighting.

Cold War America and the Vietnam War

The events occurring in the United States at the time the film was made and first screened revolved chiefly around the Vietnam War, which had begun in 1957 as a conflict for control of South Vietnam between the non-Communist government and Communist forces (Handlin, 2003). The Vietnam War was the longest war in which the United States participated, running from 1957 to 1975 (Handlin, 2003). Vietnam was divided into the Communist Democratic Republic of Vietnam, commonly called North Vietnam, and the non-Communist Republic of Vietnam, commonly called South Vietnam. North Vietnamese forces and Communist-trained South Vietnamese rebels sought to overthrow the southern government and eventually reunite the country (Handlin, 2003).

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy sent military aid and advisers to support the South Vietnamese government. Shortly after Lyndon Johnson became president, the Communists threatened to topple that government. Johnson responded by dispatching hundreds of thousands of American combat troops to assist South Vietnam, and by the mid-1960s the United States was deeply embroiled in the conflict (Handlin, 2003).

Public response to the Vietnam War differed sharply from the near-unanimous support Americans had shown during World Wars I and II. A majority initially supported the war effort, but significant opposition also existed from the outset. In the late 1960s, opposition grew considerably, with critics arguing that the United States had no right to interfere in Vietnamese affairs. Across the country, college students and others staged antiwar demonstrations (Handlin, 2003).

Bibliography

Handlin, O. (2003). The Vietnam War. In World Book Encyclopaedia, for Apple Macintosh.

Sinnigen, H. D. (2003). Spartacus. In World Book Encyclopaedia, for Apple Macintosh.

'Spartacus: Historical background.' vroma.org/~bmcmanus/spartacus.html. Accessed 26 January 2004.

Koller, B. Review of Spartacus (1960). reviews.imdb.com/Reviews/140/14080. Accessed 26 January 2004.

'Spartacus.' Review of the film and its historical context. historyinfilm.com/spart/. Accessed 26 January 2004.