Film: "Gladiator"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, in Plato's "Symposium", Pausanias describes common love as being about the body and not the soul, dishonorable rather then honorable, and based on selfish desires; whereas, heavenly love is more pure, for honorable reasons, of the soul and intellect and long-lasting. The author points out that, in the film "Gladiator", the character Maximus represents heavenly love because he loves with honor focused on the soul and not the body; therefore, he receives the same kind of love in return, receiving honorable love that cannot be destroyed. The paper relates that the film's character Commodus represents common love because he gives love dishonorably, is selfish and does not love the soul, thereby, he receives the same kind of short-term love in return.

From the Paper:

"Another important point is that the love that Commodus receives is only given as a service to him. The people of Rome only show him any love for their own reasons or for what they have to gain. The same is not true for Maximus. In loving Maximus, the people have nothing to gain. They simply become inspired to love him without being required to and without having any reason to. This means that the love that Maximus receives is honorable. In contrast, the love that Commodus receives is not honorable since it is only given for selfish reasons."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Gladiator. Dir. Ridley Scott. Columbia Tristar, 2000.
• Plato. Symposium. Trans. Benjamin Jowett. Retrieved April 18, 2006. URL: http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/symposium.html

More papers on Film: "Gladiator":

• Book Review # 95040 : "Film: "Gladiator" (Scott, 2000)"
• Film Review # 123318 : "Reaction to "Gladiator"
• Comparison Essay # 99624 : "Gladiator" by Ridley Scott"

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