Fiction and Untruth in Amadeus by Peter Shaffer Essay -- Amadeus Peter

Fiction and Untruth in Amadeus by Peter Shaffer The play â€Å"Amadeus† by Peter Shaffer was not written in order to be a biography of the great composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, much more than this, Peter Shaffer wrote it as a story, rather than a history. In his story he was free to insert fiction to make the play more interesting to a wide audience, as well as to fulfill his purposes. However, musicologists and historians have written several articles claiming that Peter Shaffer â€Å"trashed this immortal†. What none of them can see is that in â€Å"Amadeus† there are situations that are plausible while others are â€Å"fictional ornament†. In this paper I will make an attempt to point what is fiction or untruth. The center of the play lies on the character of Antonio Salieri and his obsessive jealously of Mozart. To convey this plot, it was necessary that Salieri had motives enough dislike Mozart. So it was necessary to build a character that was extremely competent but with no talent at all to contrast with a genius who behaved badly. With this, Salieri would have reasons to be jealous. As his first attempt to convey his plot, Salieri is shown as a musical hack as we can see in this extract: â€Å"Bewildered, MOZART does so (halts and listens), becoming aware of SALIERI playing his March of Welcome. It is an extremely banal piece, vaguely – but only vaguely - reminiscent of another march to become very famous later one.† The truth is that Salieri was recognized as a great composer and that is the reason he was appointed as the court composer and imperial Kappelmeister. He had several students, including Beethoven, Liszt and Schubert. His operas were performed and acclaimed in Italy and France during 1778 to 1790. Unfortunately, his style lost worth and his works were no longer popular at the end of the XVIII century. However, showing Salieri as only a competent musician was intentional in order to convey the plot, which is the rivalry against Mozart’s artistic creativity and Salieri’s intellectual capacity. Salieri held his posts in the court from 1774 until 1824. He died one year later in 1825 and in his last years he suffered from senility. During 1824 there was indeed the rumor in Vienna that someone had heard Salieri saying that he had poisoned Mozart. However, many biographies of Mozart don’t even mention the probability of poisoning and in 182... ...d, at least in the expositional first act. It has been made so deliberately by crowding together into an hour’s time instances of Wolfgang’s most unattractive behavior, so as to provide ever-increasing fuel for Salieri’s equally mounting sense of outrage. This is dramatically essential, because at the end of the act, Salieri has to explode in a furious, pain-racked, violently aggrieved address to his God, upbraiding him for choosing a patently unworthy man to be his divine instrument.† But what is documented is that Mozart was â€Å"extremely irritable. A sort of child. All his sentiments had more violence than depths.† – 1804. So Mozart personality was exaggerated in order to convey the plot. Being like this, we would give a minimal reason for Salieri being jealous. It was intentional to make Mozart as a silly person so that Salieri’s rage would have a motif. With these discussed elements of the play, it seems noticeable that a playwright or any writer is free to use any ornament needed to convey what he wants to transmit to the readers. Shaffer, although being a Mozart scholar, used some fictional elements to write his story about the relation between the two composers.

Greek Mythology and Hades Essay

The ancient Greek people wrote stories about characters known as gods in order to explain things in the world. For example, the story of Hades and Persephone explains why plants do not grow in the winter. The story of Hades and Persephone is only one story however, and they are only two gods out of the large number of immortal characters that the Greeks created. Hades is the god of the underworld, goes by many different names, was extremely protective of his posessions, and was married to the beautiful God, Persephone. The Underworld (Image from Medea’s Greek Lair; painting by Kythera Ann) Greek gods have many different names, and different spellings. For example, Greek Gods all have different names they can be called. Hades goes by many names, such as Aides, Lord of the darkness, Pluto, and god of the dead (www. theoi. com). Hades is most commonly known as the god of the underworld, and Aides is another Greek spelling of Hades. Lord of the Darkness is from his most prized posession, his helmet from the Titanomachy war. Pluto is his Roman name. Pluto is the easiest to remember, however I have found that most texts refer to him as Hades. Lord of the Dead is not to be confused with god of death or the devil, as the god of death is called Thanatos, a less popular god (www. helium. com). While Thanatos is a God, I think that Hades is a more important figure in the Greek world. Although, Hades protects things such as funerals and burial ceremonies, Hades is a completely different person than Thanatos. Hades’ Helmet of Darkness (Image from Medea’s Greek Lair) In the time of Greek Gods and Goddesses, there was a ten-year war called the Titanomachy. In addition, to win the war, the Cyclops gave the three brothers special weapons (www. helium. com). Hades was given the Helmet of Darkness; therefore, allowing him to become invisible. This invisibility allowed him to sneak on to enemy territory, which is a nifty ability. After winning the war against the Titans, the brothers were rightfully deemed their regions; Hades won the Underworld (www. helium. com). The Underworld is not depicted as hell in the Christian society, but as an island in the west ocean. However, Hades’ land, the Underworld, was thought of as under Greece as time passed. One of the Greek gods’ favorite activities was to get married. For example, Hades had a wife named Persephone, daughter of Demeter and Zeus. Hades married Persephone after abducting her (www. netplaces. com); sweeping beneath Demeter’s careful eye and stealing her most prized posession. Persephone, in my opinion, is the most beautiful of all the Gods. However, this inconsiderate action is a display of his relentless power. Despite Demeter’s wishes, Persephone stays with Hades during the winter only, and she is returned to her mother for the other eight months of the year (www.netplaces. com). At a time, Persephone was about to leave the Underworld entirely, but she ate pomegranate seeds at a banquet that Hades threw for her, which chained her to the Underworld forever. After eating food from the Underworld, the eater must always be forced to return eventually. With time, Persephone grew to like her husband more and became content with her life. Hades is the powerful God of the Underworld, husband of Persephone and goes by many different names, and is feared by all mortals. Hades is not to be confused with Thatamos, God of Death. He also participated in the Titanomachy, winning the Underworld and his helmet of darkness, Persephone, image by Marta Dahlig which he cherishes even more than his abducted wife, Persephone. Hades is one of the most powerful Gods, right next to Zeus and Poseidon. However, Hades is my favorite God. Works Cited Ann, Kythera. â€Å"Tales of Hades. † Hades. Medea’s Lair of Greek Mythology, n. d. Web. 30 Oct. 2012. . Atsuma, Aaron J. â€Å"HADES : Greek King of the Underworld, God of the Dead ; Mythology ; Pictures : HAIDES, PLUTO. † HADES : Greek King of the Underworld, God of the Dead ; Mythology ; Pictures : HAIDES, PLUTO. Amazon, n. d. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. . Conner, Nancy. â€Å"Classical Mythology. † The Abduction of Persephone. The New York Times Company, n. d. Web. 30 Oct. 2012. . Harry, Tim. â€Å"Greek Mythology: Hades, the God of the Dead. † Helium. Helium, 01 Apr. 2008. Web. 30 Oct. 2012. .

Rational Vs. Non Rational Decision Making - 1366 Words

Rational vs. Non-rational Decision Making There are different approaches when talking about decision making. The first model is rational. Rational decision making is based on practical thinking, logic, and/or evidence. This type of decision making is sensible and is often part of a plan. This decision will directly affect what comes next in the sequence of events. There are four stages in this process. Stage one is actually stating the problem or opportunity. In order to make a decision, you first have to understand the issue at hand. The last part in this stage is reaching a diagnosis after â€Å"analyzing the underlying causes† (p. 215). Stage two is about making a list of possible solutions to your problem or opportunity. It’s important to think up multiple solutions in order to calculate which will be the most effective. Stage three is about looking closer at the solution you have come up with. Each solution is carefully evaluated in order to gain an und erstanding of the plan and gauge its possible effectiveness. There are three questions you have to ask during this stage: â€Å"Is it ethical?† â€Å"Is it feasible?† and â€Å"Is it ultimately effective?† (p. 215). Stage four is about action. This is when the chosen solution will be implemented and evaluated for success or failure. Because the plan is being carried out, it is important that you are confident in the chosen solution and it was carefully decided on. 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