Although we have watched 30mins of the movie, what themes do you recognize that relate to Oedipus/Antigone? What makes Greek tragedy so compelling?
(Sometimes I can relate to this scene as a teacher, although instead of throwing the sword, I would use my ruler!...ok bad joke!)
In Oedipus and Antigone the two main themes are pride and arrogance, even though, we have only watched a part of the movie “Gladiator” I can tell that theme of this movie will have to do with pride and arrogance. Caesar’s son, Commodus, is upset at the fact that he wasn’t appointed emperor and it was given to Maximus. He lets out his fury with his dad. If his father would have appointed him as emperor, Commodus would have accepted it freely without any questioning, but because he didn’t, he started to question him: why? We as humans do that many times accept the good without any reproach, but when the bad comes then that’s when we start to say questioning. Shouldn’t it all be accepted as equal, since we learn from the bad which makes us stronger to face greater circumstances. Like Creon, who couldn't see the point of view of others, Commodus can’t see the point of view of his father. He wasn’t there to lead Rome into battle and he wasn't fighting with them, either. When he heard that his father had appointed emperor to Maximus that’s all he needed to kill his father. Pride blinds us to see the point of view of others. As human beings we want only what benefits us.
ReplyDeleteI think pride and arrogance are the same thing.
DeleteHow did Oedipus show pride??
DeleteTwo themes that relate w/ both "Antigone" & "Gladiator" are loyalty to family and pride. Commodus, Creon, & Antigone all showed pride at some point. Creon's led him to his down fall. Antigone's loyalty to her brother is what led her to her down fall. Proximo was disloyal to his son and made Maximus emperor instead. His action ended his life. Greek tragedy is so compelling because the stories aren't clichés and the themes are profound. P.S. can't wait to watch what that scene is about.
ReplyDeleteThe theme that i recognize in watching "Gladiator" for 30 minutes that relate to Oedipus and Antigone is arrogance and loyalty. Arrogance and loyalty plays in a role for Antigone because she believes her death should be honored for fighting what she believed was a proper burial for her brother. She's loyal to family for risking her own. Oedipus left his parents of Corinth because he did not want to bring any harm to them, which is a loyal thing to do, but he is arrogant in the way that he believes he deserves a punishment just like the ordinary Thebans if he is guilty of killing his father. Ceasar's son is arrogant for thinking he is capable of ruling Rome when he is late in arriving to even lead Rome battle for victory. He seems to be loyal to his own belief because he killed his father for giving the throne to Maximus and since his father is giving the throne to Maximus, he mind as well give himself a sense of accomplishment of revenge to kill his father. Greek tragedy is so compelling because the lessons are learned after a tragic event has occured. Not only that, but the words the characters speak are so deep and can be understood in different ways. The circumstances in the Greek tragedy are different from what people experience today, but the themes and lessons can be related to situations of today that don't necessarily have to be in the same situation.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you in that Greek tragedy the lessons are learned after a tragic event happens. Very true.
DeleteI also believe that Commodus is arrogant. I think he purposly arrived to the battlefield late because he is afraid of dieing in battle
DeleteLoyalty and pride would be two themes I could think of from the 30mins we have so far watched of the movie.Commodus wants to have pride by being Emperor.His jealousy/anger of his father not choosing him as emperor leads him to killing him.He shows no loyalty to his own family which relates to Creon how he ended up causing death to his own family.They both let their pride take over.There's different ways they all seem to fit together which makes tragedy compelling on the way they learn from their mistakes when it's too late.
ReplyDeleteIn “Gladiator” and Antigone/Oedipus pride and destiny are two of the most important themes. Everybody in the three sources show how arrogant they can be. Both Oedipus and Creon were blinded by pride and eventually caused their ruin. Although, we have not finished the film it is predictable that Commodus will be destroyed because of his pride. Also, destiny can be seen in Oedipus Rex/Antigone and Gladiator. In Oedipus Rex he tried to escape his destiny by fleeing from Corinth, but Oedipus still was controlled by an outside force and ended up marring his mother. In Antigone Creon was told by Tiresias that he would be the culprit of many deaths. At the end that is just what he did. In Gladiator Commodus had to become the ruler because he was the son of Caesar Marcus Aurelius, but destiny interfered and made Maximus emperor instead. Greek tragedy is very compelling because it is full of morals and almost anything you can think of. There is politics, religion, morals, etc. Also, we can relate to the characters situation and thoughts.
ReplyDeleteGood point...destiny will play a great part in the movie. Remember, Maximus said, "What we do in life echoes in eternity"
DeleteOk I'll keep that in mind. Thank you.
DeleteSo far, the most obvious shared theme in Sophocles' trilogy and in the movie Gladiator is the submission to government. Creon forces his people to submit to his rule or face serious consequences, and it is very effective since Ismene is scared for herself and Antigone. Similarly, we see that Lucilla suspects Commodus killed Proximo when she slaps him several times. However, since Commodus is now the emperor, she praises him and says "Hail, Caesar." She loves the king, even if it is her own hated brother. We have not seen much pride in the movie to say that it is a major theme similar to the Oedipus trilogy, but since it is a "tragic" story, then it is reasonable to suspect it will be. So far, Maximus, although merciless on the battlefield, is a nice guy, and does not show much, if any, arrogance or pride. Commodus does not show arrogance the way Creon does, but he does describe himself over-ambitious to impress his father. Over-ambition can also be a very tragic flaw, as seen in Frankenstein. People find Greek Tragedy so interesting because it can relate to everyone. Everyone feels pride or at least strong self-worth. People also enjoy stories that teach practical life lessons, especially through excitement and adventure, and especially in seeing evil punished. And whether one can relate to a story or not, it is enjoyable if it expresses deep thoughts and feelings of the characters, which Greek Tragedy does perfectly.
ReplyDeleteInstead of Proximo, I meant the former Caesar Marcus Aurelius.
DeleteVery interesting analysis...it seems that anytime government is involved there is corruption, which leads to tragedy. Wow..Jorelle, no comment on my video?
DeleteAntigone/Oedipus and Gladiator both share numerous parallels in themes, most notably pride, and destiny in a way. Pride is certainly the biggest similarity they share. In Oedipus, pride blinds the king and leads to his downfall, and in Antigone the same virus infects Creon's judgement. Commodus in Gladiator seems to be stricken with the same sense of pride; killing his own father in the process. He could not handle the fact that his father believed that someone else outside of the family line could rule better than his own flesh and blood, and with his pride hurt he reacted in that senseless way. What makes Greek tragety so compelling is the fact that you are left very uncertain not only about what is going to happen, but what they intend in their use of symbolism and as you say, their "diving deeper" into the sea of higher understanding.
ReplyDeleteIn Gladiator and Antigone/Oedipus arrogance and loyalty to family is a shared theme. Creon in Antigone lost most of his family due to his decision and arrogance. In what we have seen in Gladiator Commodus kills his father and was disloyal to his family over his father's decision. I think Commodus like Oedipus and Creon will learn a lesson at the end and will be a tragic hero that could've been so much more if they had chosen to embrace the positives instead of the negatives
ReplyDeleteWhat about the last question asked? What lesson will Commodus learn at the end? Too vague...dive deeper!
DeleteOne of the main themes of “Oedipus/Antigone” was pride and it's also seems to be the main theme of “Gladiator”. In “Oedipus”, he had so much pride that it eventually was what caused his destruction. He thought he had it all, but when he learned of his destiny and the truth he lost everything. In “Antigone”, she had too much pride as well. She began to think highly of herself. Antigone believed the gods would honor her for doing the right thing and burying her brother. She killed herself but was not honored. In the movie “Gladiator”, Commodus shows a lot of pride, just because he's the son of Caesar Marcus Aurelius who is emperor of the Roman Empire. When Commodus and Lucilla are in the carriage he shows pride, by saying hes the one for sure who will be appointed emperor after his father dies. He only wants to be emperor of the Roman Empire and will do whatever it takes to make sure no one else takes his throne. Greek tragedies teach us lessons and warns us of things that could happen, that's what makes them compelling. Throughout the story you become interested and you want to keep reading to find out what happens, what tragedy occurs. You definitely learn life lessons and how to avoid causing your own destruction.
ReplyDeleteSo far the most obvious themes in Gladiator and Antigone are pride and the descision to follow, or not follow, the government. In Antigone, Antigone chose to not follow the government and went against Creon and buried her brother. In Gladiator, Maximus has to decide whether he will follow his former king's wishes of his new one's. Greek tragidy is so compelling because, as stated in the poem we recently read, (I can't remember the exact title) we are all the same, that we all have sinned and are full of pride. They are also compelling because people tend to feel compassionate towards those who have lost everything, or almost everything, as seen in the films. They may also watch inorder to make their own problems seem not so bad, compared to the character's problems.
ReplyDeleteIn "Gladiator" and Antigone/Oedipus these stories both relate by "Self Awareness." Each story lacked self awareness in them since in Antigone/Oedipus Antigone and Oedipus didn't realize about their sake, but the others around them. In Gladiator self awareness played a role when Marcus Aurdius son wasn't allowed to become the next generation of the kingdom. The son had self awareness since he now then realize of the things that his father deeply wanted in him which caused the death of his father. The father had told his son that it was his fault of his sons ways. Greek tragedies are plays that started off at one extreme/high point and ended at the other/opposite, so it could go from good to bad or from bad to good. It was intended to be a right-on experience, allowing the audience/reader to run the range of other emotions more than the basic feelings and kill themselves with utter disappointment(Don't kill your self) as they read on, on a story.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching about 30 minutes of "Gladiator". I think that themes related to Antigone and Oedipus would be pride and destiny. In both Antigone and Oedipus, pride led the main character blindly into his own destruction or his true destiny.In Gladiator. Im pretty sure that Maximus is destined to be king and even though the kings son took over he will suffer his own destiny. Maximus has too much pride to accept the kings son's offering to helping him rule the kingdom. In Antigone both Creon and Antigone had to much pride to recognize the fact that they are arrogant and that their pride led them to their true destiny.Greek tragedy is compelling because it grabs the attention of the reader be experiencing others mistakes, and learning from them.
ReplyDeleteTwo themes that have been common in Gladiator,Oedipus,and Antigone is pride as well as self determination.So far in Gladiator,Commodus kills his father, because he was the one that wanted to become king.Which shows that he is to prideful,and is determined to do anything to get what he wants.In Oedipus, he tries to escape his destiny, because he was determined to have a better life.Later becoming the king of thebes,and being filled with to much pride, blinded him from solving his own riddle.Also in Antigone, Antigone was determine in giving her brother a proper burial, and was filled with to much pride to not follow the kings order.She did what she her heart told her to do, and didn't let anyone change her mind.
ReplyDeleteTwo themes that "Gladiator" relates to Oedipus/Antigone is arrogance and loyalty. In Gladiator Commodus shows arrogance when his told that Maximus was going to be the king.Commodus shows his arrogance when he couldn't accept that his father didn't chose his own son as the king, and kills him. Oedipus and Creon showed arrogance which led to their destruction. Their arrogance and pride was why Oedipus couldn't solve his riddle and why Creon didn't realize his own foolishness. In Gladator Lucilla shows her loyalty to her family and Rome. Lucilla show more loyalty to Rome when she slaps her brother, but also shows loyalty to her brother when she kissed his hand. Antigone shows lotalty to her family when she tried to bury her own brother and breaking the law. I think what makes Greek tragedies compelling is how destiny plays in the characters' downfall, and how theirs personalities and actions lead to their downfall. How a lesson is learned from the ragic endings is alos interesting.
ReplyDeleteThe two major themes I saw in the movie Glalitor and Antigone/Oedipus is disloyalty to the family and pride. Creon as one of the main characters in the book shows pride which lead him to his major down fall. In the film Commands shows the disloyalty to the family to the family by not accepting his fathers decision. Ismene shows her disloyalty to the family by not helping Antigone bury her brother.
ReplyDeleteWhen I see the movie and the story together I see the themes of each is loyalty and pride. I also understand why because the Greeks had a big thing on pride and loyalness. When we see both from a view, both story did kill a member of the family and both had a destiny to do it. His boy in the movie Gladiator, was not suppose to be king but his stubbornness got to him,like Owdipus.
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