Mark Antony and Popular Culture: Masculinity and the Construction of an Icon by Rachael Kelly, is a pathbreaking analysis of how Antony (the pop culture icon, hopeless lover and drunkard) differs so substantially from Antonius (the historical figure, esteemed general and statesman). Kelly successfully lays out—with great quality and depth—how the mythology itself performs a deeper socio-cultural function. In order to further examine and engage with this idea, this informative and original study employs a socio-ideological analysis of a series of seven culturally resonating screen texts dating from, for example, Cleopatra (Cecil B DeMille, 1934) to the television series Rome (HBO, BBC, RAI, RAI2, 2005-2007). This meticulously …show more content…
These screen narratives are dire in positioning the Antony-icon as a paradigm of gender anxiety. The eight texts analyzed in this study each follow a series of narrative tropes that in some way relate to gender performance. Kelly catechizes the notion that Antony-as-icon is used to perform and purge the spectre of masculinity gone awry. For readers unfamiliar with Marcus Antonious of whom Antony’s deficiencies are manifested, chapter one clearly delivers a historiography and ideology of Antonius as well as background information on Roman masculinity as a representational strategy and Roman political invective. Utilizing discursive practice, Kelly offers a possible explanation for why Mark Antony is often considered a figure of problematic masculine performance in the pre-cinematics era socio cultural receptions of this mythology. Once a basis for …show more content…
Other important texts that were not examined such as silent films, comedies, animation, and pornography—all of which have told the story of Mark Antony in some way or another at some point—were purposefully neglected. Due to Kelly’s analysis only considering those films that follow the genre conventions of the historical epic, meaningful information about hegemonic masculinity as it is encoded within these genres is neglected and it does not help that often times, discourses in a historical epic are embedded within Western gender and identity construction and therefore go unseen to audiences. However, this exemplar book still greatly contributes to the fields of gender, history and media by taking gender studies to a new direction by probing the purpose and boundaries of hegemonic masculinity within Western cultural and political discourse. Students, scholars and fans of Mark Antony and gender will learn greatly from this monograph and in which the Antonian mythography has been translated into the complex semiological system that is
In comparison to the perceptions both Cassius and Brutus have towards Caesar, is the perspectives of Antony and Caesar of himself. Antony looked at Caesar as a friend, a role model as well as a kind and deserving leader. This notion is exemplified through the use of emotive language “O mighty Caesar! /most noble blood of all this world/ the noblest man/ That ever lived in the tide of times”. Furthermore, the use of descriptive and connotative language throughout Antony’s
In the Tragedy of Julius Caesar, the people of Rome have opinions that are very easily swayed. However, there is one man who does this best in comparison to the rest. This man is Marc Antony. He sways the crowd in favor of his ideas through his use of the will, his speaking techniques of ethos and logos, and by speaking directly to the hearts of the people of Rome.
Marc Antony, Brutus, and Cassius are all critical characters in William Shakespeare’s famous play, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. Due to their distinctive personalities and values, there is no trait that all of these characters share, although they do share some traits with one another. Firstly, Marc Antony and Cassius are manipulative in nature, while Brutus is not. Secondly, the root of Brutus and Cassius’ failure is their personality flaw, while Marc Antony proves strong in all the ways they prove weak. Lastly, Antony and Cassius, unlike Brutus, do not separate their private affairs from their public actions while acts only with honor and virtue and completely ignores his personal concerns.
In ‘Macbeth’, masculinity is presented as a driving force to Macbeth’s crimes, making it a vital theme. The essay’s focus is masculinity’s presentation through Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Primarily, Shakespeare portrays Macbeth as “valiant”: a prized, respected masculine quality in their society. However, this trait becomes warped along the play. Furthermore, Lady Macbeth yearns for masculinity but she fails to acquire it. Shakespeare thus displays masculinity in two different lights.
Plutarch (45-120 AD), a Greek biographer and moral philosopher, is the author of Life of Antony: an ancient source chronicling the life and dealings of Mark Antony (83-30 BC). Part of a larger collection of biographies focused on prominent Roman and Greek figures, the Life of Antony was intended as a character study (Fear, 2008). Plutarch was exceedingly intrigued by the ways in which the personalities, integrities and shortcomings of legendary men influenced the path of history. Life of Antony is infamous for its amalgamation of history and myth (Kimball, 2000). In the modern sense, Plutarch would not be considered a true historian. However, the source gives notable insight into significant figures in Antony’s life in particular Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt (69-30 BC). It is considered the principal ancient source of Cleopatra’s life (Fear, 2008), detailing the effect Plutarch believed Cleopatra to have on Antony.
Many people know that Julius Caesar was betrayed and killed by many people who he had thought to be his friends. Some less common knowledge is that he did still have friends and others who stayed loyal to him. One man named Mark Antony was the most loyal of them all, even after Caesar’s death. When he found out Caesar had been killed, he began plotting to get on the traitor’s good sides and make it seem as if he had joined them so that he could convince the citizens to fight against them with him. He deceived the traitors and convinced them to let him speak at Caesar’s funeral, and in this speech he turned the citizens against them using very powerful rhetorical skills. After he had drove the traitors from the city, he took control of the city and led them to victory in a war against the conspirator’s armies. These are three telling examples that prove Antony’s skill and potential as a leader.
In conclusion, the film She’s the Man shows the audience how gender gets represented in films. It shows the traditional femininity as well as the traditional masculinity. This illustrates that gender has impacts on power and gender relations to contribute gender inequality. Gender norms are enforced in films which maintain the power inequality difference between both genders. These issues confine the way modern films represent gender and gives a direct effect to the
Mark Antony, in the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, was a brave, intelligent, pleasure-loving, and cunning man. He was loyal to his friend, Caesar, whom he considered a true friend. He looked at life as a game in which he had a signified part to play, and played that part with excellent refinement and skill.
In ancient Greece, it was crucial that men proved their masculinity in order to uphold their worth and earn them a place in social establishments. An important aspect of human life is a man’s masculine identity and how it plays a role in society. However with this idea of masculinity came limitations that were not to be crossed. Ancient Greek epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey, both function to provide their own view on masculinity in society through the reverse sex similes. In the Iliad the crucial role of Achilles as a warrior and his association with maternal protection, as represented through it’s reverse sex maternal similes, ultimately proves problematic. This intrinsic part of man to fight on the battlefield to win timê and kleos is ultimately
The concept of gender is evolutionary and difficult to define, though it can be argued that traditionally females have been predominantly defined by their desirability, and males by their masculinity. The way a director presents gender in film can either inspire social change and conversation, or alternatively it can further reproduce social norms. In the case of the film’s discussed in this essay, it is clear that Baz Luhrmann captivates a younger audience and intentionally uses actor selection and the presentation of gender to transform a well-worn Shakespearean story into something new and evolved to inspire a younger audience. On the other
Roman politician and popular figure in the Roman Republic, Mark Antony, uses the rhetorical devices of pathos, logos, and ethos in his funeral oration for Julius Caesar, in order to deem the assassination of Caesar by Cassius, Brutus, and their conspirators, wrong. The speech conducted by Mark Antony, a good friend of Caesar’s, has a sorrowful tone due to the fact that Mark Antony wants the crowds of Romans to agree with him. Antony conducts his speech in such a way to strike pity and regret in the assassinators and conspirators of Julius Caesar. Usage of pathos, ethos, and logos is essential in winning over the plebeians trust and respect.
plebeians in Act 3 Scene 2. He uses this in order to create a sense of
In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, great emphasis is placed on what it means to be a good Roman. Honour, honesty, service, and dignity were among the qualities considered virtuous and which contributed to a sense of Roman duty. Along with the virtues, Shakespeare also seems to examine the nature of philosophical Stoicism. The treatment of constancy and Stoicism has many thematic and moral implications in Julius Caesar. In analysing Brutus’ supposedly noble character, Shakespeare calls into question Stoicism’s place as a guide for human conduct.
In this paper I will analyze two characters in two separate works, one from a literary text and one from a film. The focus of this paper will be on heroes that have a relationship to an element of mythology. I will use the character Odysseus from Homer’s epic poem, “The Odyssey” and the character Wonder Woman from the American superhero film “Wonder Woman”. In this essay I will analyze the gender, appearance, actions, and roles that these heroes have. Throughout this essay, I will also discuss the negative characteristics that both these heroes have, such as their violent actions towards others. Heroes possess numerous qualities that make them great, however, there are certain qualities of a hero that are consistent throughout Greek mythology; bravery, intelligence, and strength. These qualities are significant to these two Greek Mythologies because these heroes are known to bravely risk their lives for others, using their wisdom to guide them, all while fighting strongly for what they believe in. This paper will serve to prove that regardless of the gender of each of these personas, the characteristics that define a hero remain consistent.
The heroes in Greek and Roman mythology had the characteristics of violent masculinity and bravery, the ideology of a patriarchal society in which all the men were elite than the women. According to Kampmen in Gender Theory in Roman Art, “Roman society evolved in such a way as to enable elite men to establish and maintain power over everyone else, ” such men included heroes like Hercules, Achilles, and Pentheus (1996, p.152). They represented the elite males who had stable physical attributes that emphasized their masculinity and heroism. Heroes like the ones mentioned above had been idolized and worshiped with cults due to their works in helping their societies to fight monsters, the gods also favored them. Gender is emphasized by one 's appearance, dressing being the primary attribute. The mythic narratives of Achilles on Scyros, Hercules and Omphale and lastly Pentheus and Dionysus give a rather strange definition on the characteristics of heroes when they crossdress. In this essay, I shall discuss how male heroes characteristics become subverted than emphasized due to the myths of cross-dressing.