“True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.” The films, Braveheart and Gladiator, strikingly depict this as both protagonists lead their respective armies to victory at the expense of their own lives, leaving behind their legacy of greatness through their leadership, courage and loyalty.
The theme of leadership permeates throughout both films re-enforcing the concept of greatness. In the film, Gladiator, this is clearly evident as General Maximus leads the Roman army to a victory against the Barbarian Tribes in Germania. The high angle, medium shot of General Maximus before the final battle against the Barbarians, supports his role of leadership within the Roman army. This clearly displays the enormity of the army which he leads to victory. Also, the low angle, medium close-up shot of Maximus after his victory on the battlefield, undeniably emphasises this by placing him in a position of superiority as he declares the defeat of the Barbarians. Maximus' leadership earns him the respect of not only the Roman army, but of Emperor Marcus Aurelius too. This is depicted when Marcus Aurelius tells Commodus to “honour Maximus [as] he won the battle.” Commodus' poor leadership ability is used to emphasise Maximus' greatness.
Similarly, the protagonist from Braveheart, William Wallace, is conveyed as a leader as he, too, leads an army of Scots to a victory at Stirling. The fact that he is a commoner oppressed under English rule, enables others to relate to his situation allowing him to bond with his follower's. An instance where he displays leadership, is the point where he gains the support of his country while deliverin...
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...that point, the full orchestra is introduced, representing power and strength. This re-enforces Maximus' intent of vengeance as well as his loyal service “to the true Emperor, Marcus Aurelius.”
William Wallace, too, fights for revenge for his wife's death as well as the freedom of Scotland. This point is clearly made as the last word William manages to belt out is “FREEDOM!”. He will not accept mercy in exchange for asking for forgiveness. This clearly indicates his passion and loyalty towards Scotland.
The themes of leadership, courage and loyalty continue to surface throughout the films, Braveheart and Gladiator. Their ability to serve others no matter the consequence, is a true quality of greatness.
True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.”
Although not every hero shouts “Avengers Assemble” before a worthy deed, heroism is shown in all aspects of the everyday world. Webster Dictionary has exactly 5 definitions under the word hero and still no two people explain heroism the same. Superman and Captain America are a glimpse of the fictional characters society titles a hero. Firefighters and Military portray heroism each day in the lives of every civilian. As Sullivan and Venter stated “individuals are referred to as ‘heroes’ for seemingly different reasons” and even through endless studies the adjectives referring heroes is ever changing. Among the various ideas of what it means to be a hero, boldness and valiance capture the essence of heroism.
In the movie Gladiator, Marcus Aurelius is a sick ruler who is fighting against the Parathions to take over the land and make his empire greater than it was. The movie never showed Marcus Aurelius in his youth when he was the ruler, but only showed when he was a dying man. Of course, the movie was not based off Marcus Aurelius, but it could have gone more in depth of what his beliefs were on life and his citizens. The movie kind of represents Rome as a great city, but in reality, while Aurelius was the Emperor, Rome was not all that great. Aurelius went through a tough t...
Many people say that the metal of a man is found in his ability to keep his ideals in spite of anything that life can through at you. If a man is found to have done these things he can be called a hero. Through a lifelong need to accept responsibility for all living things, Robert Ross defines his heroism by keeping faith with his ideals despite the betrayal, despair and tragedy he suffers throughout the course of The Wars by Timothy Findley.
Ridley Scott’s epic film, Gladiator, considered one of the greatest films in recent years, won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Scott’s film, tells the story of the fall and rise of the great Roman General, Maximus Decimus Meridius. The Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, tells Maximus that he wishes that he ( ) the emperor after his death, instead of his son, Commodus. Angry, Commodus, murders his own father, thus becoming the emperor, and sentences Maximus and his family to death. Maximus escapes, but the Emperor’s men murder his family and burn his home. Slave traders, capture Maximus, and sell him into slavery. Maximus must rise to the top once more, and enact his revenge on Commodus. Through a liberal humanistic critique, the film contains an inherent meaning, shows the enhancement of life and propagation of values, and reveals that human nature never changes.
On that first fateful day, when Romulus struck down his own brother Remus, the cauldron of Rome was forged in blood and betrayal. The seeds on the Palatine hill cultured one of the most potent and stretching empires of human history. Though this civilization seemingly wielded the bolts of Zeus, they were infested with violence, vanity, and deception. Yet, one man—or seemingly “un”-man—outshone and out-graced his surroundings and everyone within it. He brought Rome several victories and rescued his beloved country from an early exodus, thus providing her a second beginning. This man was Marcus Furius Camillus, and against a logical and emotional mind, he was oft less than loved and celebrated. At times he was disregarded, insulted and even exiled—irrevocably an unwarranted method to reward Rome’s “Second Founder.” This contrast of character between hero and people was perhaps too drastic and too grand. The people were not yet ready to see Marcus Furius Camillus as a model of behavior to be emulated—to be reproduced. Hence, much of Livy’s Book 5 provides a foundation for the Roman people to imitate and assimilate a contrasting, honest, and strong behavior and temperament
Everyone has heard the speech from Braveheart, where Mel Gibson pours his heart out in front of his army to get them ready to overcome the tremendous odds of taking down the English army. Gibson’s most famous line is “tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our freedom!”(Source). This quote is similar to John Proctor’s soliloquy at the end of Act IV in The Crucible by Arthur Miller, where he talks about his fatal flaw of Hubris, or pride, because he does not want his name to be marked on the church as being a witch.. This flaw of pride was also his saving grace with his wife.
In the story, “Mystery of Heroism” by Stephen Crain, the main character Fred Collins represents heroism because he risked his life to get himself water along with his troop, he ignored the negative comments, and gave a dying man his last wish. When Crain wrote this story he intended to bring curiosity to the real meaning of heroism. Fred Collins was in need of water, so he went to go talk to his captain, “I wan’t t’ get permission to go git some water..” (Crain N.Pag.), he needed to take the risk to go get water so he doesn’t become dehydrated, he grabbed the others mens canteens on the way out. Grabbing the others mens canteens shows heroism because he did not just think of himself, he thought of others too. No one could believe what he
In “Mystery of Heroism”, Crane depicts a fearless soldier who risks his life on a dare. I find this act juvenile, in the setting of the short story. War is surrounding them, and people and horses are dying all around them, and they can’t hold out for a drink of water. On his way back from filling their canteens, a dying man asks for a drink of water. He dismisses him, but then gives in. The man dies in his arms. What is a harsh reality, is that the men and women who are the most fearless and heroistic, are the ones who are not alive to accept praise. Collins returns with canteens full of water and he is praised and uplifted for his small act of heroism, when the true hero is one who does it without anything in return, who asks for no reward or mention. This same selflessness is illustrated in Whitman’s poem, “Oh Captain! My Captain!” The Captain of the story, is one who sacrificed all he had for the war but died tragically before the war’s end. “For you the flag is flung- for you the bugle trills. For you bouquets and ribbon’d wreaths—for you the shores a-crowding, For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning.” The Captain is who should be receiving this praise, and the private, or soldier below him, shows modesting in giving the true hero
“There is a certain enthusiasm, in liberty, that makes human nature rise above itself, in acts of bravery and heroism.” In order to be a hero, you have to be brave enough to face challenges and tough situations. Heroes don’t always have to be a boy with a cape and that’s really muscular or somebody who only saves people from bad guys, heros can be anything. Although they look like ordinary people, but they are fearless, strong and caring. They never quit or doubt themselves, if they fail a challenge they would try harder to succeed it. Even when the odds are against them, heroism means taking action, showing dedication to your quest and not giving up. For example, the movie Wreck-it Ralph the main character Ralph, the arcade-game
The movie starts out with an opening battle between the well-equipped Roman army and a Germanic tribe defending their lands. Russell Crowe is the main character in the movie and he plays a roman general named Maximus. Maximus is a good hearted warrior with valor and honor that is constantly displayed in the epic. He is loved by the roman people and the Emperor Marcus Aurelius. The Roman army led by General Maximus defeats the ragged Germans in the opening scene. After a successful march through Germany, Maximus has a meeting with the emperor. The emperor tells the general that Maximus will rule Rome after Emperor Aurelius's death instead of Aurelius' son Commodus. Maximus being a humble gracious man is shocked that a common general could rule Rome. Commodus kills his father in anger and believes he has been betrayed by his father. He then orders the death of Maximus and his family in his rage.
Compared to other romantic action thrillers, Braveheart is better than all opposing movies. The director’s use of scenery, accents, and the story line are far superior to that of similar themed movies such as Gladiator and Troy. Although all three are great, Braveheart has a way of drawing its viewers in until the last seconds of the film. While the movie is lengthy, the story would not be as remarkable if even one plot had been left
“They may take our lives, but they’ll never take our freedom.” The famous words from the famous Scottish knight William Wallace. In the thrilling, five oscar winning film, Braveheart, William Wallace showed his true colors and his true bravery through every single scene. He shows both Anglo-Saxon and epic hero characteristics. He truly never seized to amaze all the people he led. The way he carried himself was what made all the people want to follow. This is what made William Wallace the greatest hero of all time .William Wallace showed great loyalty, bravery, generosity, friendship, strength, good ethics, and was extremely glorified.
The Scene begins with a high angle extreme long shot of about one quarter of the inside of the colosseum. Roman guards surround Maximus as he stands over the body of the defeated Commodus. Here, the graphic blocking of the guards represents Maximus’s enslavement and further reminds the viewer of the futility of his situation. After all,
Jimmy said “Bravery’s a treasure in a lonesome place.” Since the society is filled with boredom, fear and insecurity, the presence of a young man with the courage to kill his father becomes an example of a hero. Synge includes this to demonstrate the readiness of desperate places in the western world like the county of Mayo to accept murderers under certain conditions as an act of heroism. At the beginni...
The expectancy theory proposes an individual will behave or act in a certain way because they are motivated to select a specific behavior over other behaviors due to what they expect the result of that selected behavior will be. In essence, the motivation of the behavior selection is determined by how much one desires the outcome to be. This is shown when Maximus is initially recognized as a supreme gladiator by his owner Proximo, the man who taught him how to fight as a gladiator. Proximo took great interest in Maximus’ abilities and encourages him to go to the Roman Coliseum to fight for his freedom. Proximo advises him that if he is able to “win the crowd”, he will earn their respect and eventually his freedom. Performance to Outcome poses the question on whether success will lead to reward. The reward in this case would be after successfully winning battles, and the crowds’ favor, Maximus would gain his freedom and seize his opportunity to kill Commodus. Maximus’ strong desire of vengeance for the murder of his family drives him to win every battle he comes up against. Infuriated by Maximus’ success, Commodus sets up a fixed fight between Maximus and Tigris of Gaul, the undefeated gladiator. Maximus prevails in the battle and against Commodus’ orders, spares Tigris’ life. Maximus’ defiance of the emperor and mercy to Tigris made him more popular to the crowd than even Commodus