Download File - Learning and Writing

!!You will need a clear introduction that outlines the main argument. Everything in your body
paragraphs needs to be shaped by this. Make sure that it reflects the themes you have chosen to
focus on and that each topic sentence is clearly derived from this.!!
A significant difference in the interpretation of leadership qualities is present between
Shakespeare’s Henry V and Hood’s Eye in the Sky, reflecting the impact of differing contextual
values on the construction of these texts. Hood’s contemporary film places a large emphasis on the
the role of morality in leadership, whereas Shakespeare’s reflection of dominant ideologies during his
time period almost entirely ignores the issue of morality. Leadership is extremely important as it has
the ability to control nations, dictate culture and manipulate values on what is right and wrong. This
reflects the Elizabethan context, in which masculine, decisive, persuasive and what contemporary
audiences might consider brutal leaders were admired. Henry’s ability in rhetoric, emphasized in the
iambic parameter of his dramatic soliloquies “The fewer the men, the greater the share of honor. Gods
will I pray the wishes not one man more.” this reverse psychology and monosyllabic language is used
to manipulate his men was and energies the mood of the audience. In this time period, manipulating
his army into a near suicidal battle by playing on his societies thirst for honor was seen as highly
admirable. This theocentric society gave unilateral power to the monarch, who ruled under God,
therefore his decisions were considered to have divine sanction. Within such a belief system,
questioning moral obligations of leaders is not encouraged, possibly not even considered by the
majority. In contrast, contemporary Western society is encouraged to value accountability in their
leaders, so the complete lack of what we would call moral leadership in Henry V is juxtaposed with
the ideologies of modern society in Hoods film through an emphasis on the moral dillemmas inherent
in the ‘war on terror’. The moral complexity of leadership is highlighted by the repeated “referring
up” requested by the politicians, which encourages the responder to____________. A problem
explored is that leaders in this society have their jobs on the line and thus put a lot of thought into
morally right decisions, “We’ve got two suicide bombers in that house but no one wants to take
responsibility for pulling the trigger”. Two very different views on what is considered legitimate and
acceptable leadership are seen in these texts, each reflecting the values of their respective contexts,
revealing that contextual values have a significant impact on composers and the construction of texts.
In modern, Western society war is considered to be negative, and it is believed that all efforts should
be made to avoid it where possible. However, these attitudes are not reflected in the Elizabethan
context, which valued national pride and honour, glorifying them to such an extent that it was
considered reasonable to engage in conflicts over them. During the chorus of the play, which reflects
the dominant ideologies of the time, Shakespeare emphasis the viewpoint of passion and patriotism
towards war in the metaphor “Now all the youth of England are on fire”, presenting the message
that… (explain the quote more – composer’s purpose, effect of this, etc.). However, Shakespeare does
not entirely share this opinion, as seen though the visual and auditory imagery of, “the widow’s tears,
the orphans cries”, here focusing on the negative effects of war on civilians. In this aspect,
Shakespeare is subversive and not restrained by his context, emphasising his humanist viewpoints.
But this resistant voice is now seen as mainstream, as portrayed in Eye in the Sky. By today’s
standards, war and death are seen as horrible, to be avoided at all costs. If war must be undertaken, a
moral standpoint is taken to minimize fatalities and effects on civilian lives, as life is strongly valued
in the modern context. Gavin Hood fills his film with military jargon, an example being the repetition
of “CDE”, an important term in modern warfare standing for ‘Collateral Damage Estimate’. This
repetition is designed to highlight the broader consequences of war and remind people of the moral
complexities involved in the process of waging war. People in the film are portrayed as much more
aware of the devastation occasioned by war, “Never tell a soldier that he does not know the cost of
war.” In contrast, (link to Shakespeare). There is a drastic difference between social and ethical views
surrounding war between contexts, present within these two texts, yet the overall theme of war
remains relevant in both contexts. Thus, (link to question).
Moral leadership principals are crucial for the ethical conduct of war. This theme transcends time, and
is recognizable within William Shakespeare’s play “King Henry V” in the 16th century and Gavin
Hood’s modern film “Eye in the Sky”. The extremely contradicting values of these two societies
surrounding war and leadership is clearly present within a comparison of the two texts, both
representing the contexts in which they were created. Thus, the share themes of war and leadership
reveal that these elements of the human experience remain universally relevant, however attitudes to
them will change over time in response to changing contextual experiences and values.