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The Patriot, Directed By Roland Emmerich

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In the summer of 1776, the colonies were forever changed with the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It made war with the British Empire official, pulling other colonies that had not begun to fight into the battle. The war brought much change for everyone associated with the colonies, leaving no one unaffected. The movie The Patriot, directed by Roland Emmerich, tells the story of one family, the Martins, in South Carolina and their role in the American Revolution and how they were affected throughout it. The film portrays the American Revolution primarily from the bias of the Pro-Revolutionists, illustrating the horrors of living through the war, while giving a more simplistic view of certain aspects of life in the colonies during that time period. The film depicts the British as being gullible. In the film, there is a scene where Benjamin Martin, the leader of a militia, meets with Cornwallis to negotiate the release of approximately 18 of his men. Martin fools Cornwallis into believing that several scarecrows dressed in British uniforms are his soldiers being held captive. In an earlier scene, Martin’s men dressed in those same British uniforms to disguise themselves in order to sneak onto and blow-up one of Cornwallis’ ships. The film uses the scenes listed above to give the audience the perspective that the British could be naïve and easily misled. According to the text book, Give Me Liberty: An American History by Eric Foner and class lectures, the British

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