Greek Influences In Walt Disney Films

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In the famous Walt Disney movies, Pirates of the Caribbean, the films focus on the main character, Johnny Depp, as Captain Jack Sparrow. The movies are about pirates that go on risky adventures for their own personal fortune or gain of power. They tend to reference a great deal of ancient Greek mythology since the majority of the settings take place in the open oceans. There are many differences due to the modern influence to make the movie more interesting, but some Greek influences are still present in the films. The main movies that reference Greek mythology are Dead Man’s Chest, On Stranger Tides, and At World’s End. These Walt Disney films are very dark, gory, and give an overall eerie feeling throughout the movie. Some of the main …show more content…

In the movie, Calypso is a woman named Tia Dalma who resembles somewhat of a fortune teller and can see the future. She plays a role in helping the pirates along their journey by telling them where to go to find Davy Jones (Dead Man’s Chest). Similarly, in most Greek mythologies, Gods tend to aid heroes on their journeys (Buxton 140). She makes a reappearance in At World’s End, and towards the end of the movie she transforms into her true form out of her human body (At World’s End). In Greek mythology her purpose was to seduce men in a diversion. Similarly, she keeps Odysseus for years and in the movie she keeps Davy Jones as her lover and prisoner as well (Calypso and Odysseus). As Calypso takes on her true form as a God, she creates a maelstrom during the battle of the underworld versus the living. By creating a whirlpool she is demonstrating the characteristics of the sea monster, Charybdis. This sea monster was believed to be an offspring of Poseidon and created these whirlpools that destroyed passing ships. It is said that she would consume large amounts of water only to spit it back into the sea to create the maelstrom (Buxton 142). The purpose of giving all the power to Calypso in the movie was to have her be the only true god of the sea. If they created different sea monsters or gods the story would be too confusing and harder to follow. The directors still wanted to give rise to the power of gods and monsters at sea by having Calypso represent most of them. Lastly, in the film, At World’s End, Calypso has many powers that help the story continue. She uses her power to bring back an old sailor from the dead in order to start this next movie and she rescues Captain Jack out of Davy Jones locker or otherwise known as the

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