Human Life Worth Less Than Foolish Pride?

In episode two of Spartacus: Blood and Sand, Sparatcus is admitted to the ludus of Batiatus, where he receives training to become a gladiator.

In particular, one converstion between Batiatus and Lucretia is very telling: Lucretia complains that Batiatus paid too much for Spartacus when he purchased him from Batiatas.

Batiatas recounts the circumstances by which he came to purchase Spartacus: he had defeated what was essentially a death squad of Gladiators dispatched to kill Spartacus. The crowd demanded freedom for Spartacus. In the name of placating the pride of Claudius Glaber.

There is, of course, another ulterior motive for Batiatus' purchase. It allows him to further embarrass Solonius (Craig Walsh Wrightson).

It's a tremendous comment on the sad state of human rights in Ancient Rome: not only is the life of Spartacus deemed to be valuable only as a means of placating the pride of the legatus, but it's ultimately deemed to be less valuable than the pride of Batiatus and Solonius.