illusions. dreams. reverie. candy castles.

Sunday, September 23, 2007

define greatness.

everybody can be a hero. although heroism can be manifested in various ways, our motives define how much we deserve it. people say, we live for a reason; i say, we live through reason, for reason urges us to initiate an action, gives meaning to our life and saves us from the harsh consequences we have overlooked. thus, reason is the basis of being a hero.

all this has only dawned to me after i have watched Dürenmmatt's Romvlvs d' grayt, a tragicomedy about the last emperor of the Roman Empire and how he faced the largest empire's downfall during his reign. while his ministers were hysterical about the conquest of the Teutons in their former terrritories, Romulus was complacently watching and drinking wine as if a spectator bored with the show. he took no action and plotted no retaliation against the Teutons and sat down to wait for the empire to fall.

history tells us the incompetence and treason of romulus, the last emperor of the Roman empire but the play unravels otherwise. Dürenmmatt interprets the series of events not as treacherous but rather a rubric of heroism to redeem the world from violence with the collapse of Rome. certain points were shared and highlighted. Romulus revealed in his argument with his wife that all along, he planned and desired to be an emperor for his own ambition--not power, but to destroy the Roman empire. for him, he was enthroned not as an emperor but a judge that shall end the monstrosity of the empire. he believed that his power does not entail honor but pudency for he was crowned through bloodshed and not because he deserved to be but because his men murdered fellow countrymen, devastated lives and orphaned children for it. Romulus did nothing to save the Roman empire, but with his reasons, we can say he was a great person.

the play relates to us that heroism and patriotism has certain limits. it is very noble indeed to give our life for the sake of our country however, we still should consider if our life is worth giving up for our country. does our life deserve death for a country who betrays itself? is it really worth it to defend a country that fosters corruption, treachery, volence and fraudulence? perhaps, we grasped a misconception about love for our country. we do not need to actually love our country but to love and fight for what is right for our country. therefore, heroism is not just about love for the country but it is having the right kind of love for the country.

for this reasons, i can say that Romulus, indeed, was great.

posted by anthonette || 6:21 AM