Light Vs. Dark, The Eternal Struggle

The Sultan’s Dilemma

Al-Hakim, Tawfiq. "The Norton Anthology of World Literature." The Sultan’s Dilemma. 2nd ed. Vol. F. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2009. 2282-336. Print.

The Sultan’s Dilemma’s opening scene begins with a conversation between a Condemned Man and his Executioner. It is the dead of night and as their conversation progresses the night grows short and the dawn soon breaks at which time the Executioner has been given the order to chop of the man’s head as soon as the Muezzin gives the call to morning prayer. When the Vizier, the Sultans chief minister, arrives in the morning and sees the man has not been executed he is outraged and demands the execution be carried out immediately. But the Cadi, the Sultan’s judge, wishes to know what he was charged with. The Vizier says that the man dared to call the Sultan a slave. To which the Cadi replies that he technically is still a slave because his former master, the late Sultan, never released him before his death. The Sultan and his advisers bicker about what to do about this. The Vizier says to just kill the man and that will be the end of it. The Cadi on the other hand says he should follow the law lest he be seen as a tyrant ruler, cold and unfeeling towards his people. After much debate the Sultan agrees with the Cadi and goes with his plan to be sold to the people under the terms that he will be released immediately after the purchase. In scene two the bidding begins. Many people arrive to bid on the Sultan but in the end the Lady wins him. But using her knowledge of the law she forces the Sultan to be her slave for the night. In the final scene the Sultan spends the night with the Lady, whom the entire city believes to be a prostitute, but he soon realizes that she is a wonderful and interesting woman and that he, and the city, where wrong to judge. In the end the Sultan is released and he offers to pay the Lady back her money but she refuses. So instead he gives her the massive ruby off of his turban so that she may never forget him and the night they spend together.

While the play is a comedy the underlying tones and messages of it point to a theme of light vs. dark. The Sultan is presented with a choice; either cut off the man’s head and any others that might dare to call him a slave, as the Vizier suggested, or follow the law as any normal citizen would to show his people that even he is not above the law, as the Cadi suggested. The two choices are very much a representation of the struggle between light and dark and the Sultan struggles with his decision but in the end he chooses the path of the law even though it was a harder path to take. Symbolizing that the good path is not always the easiest but in the end it will be worth the effort.

God's Gonna Cut You Down

Cash, Johnny. "God's Gonna Cut You Down” Rec. 2003. American V: A Hundred Highways. Johnny Cash. Rick Ruben, 2006. CD.

“God’s Gonna Cut You Down” or “Run On” or “Run On for a Long Time” is a folk song that has been recorded by many different artists but Johnny Cash brings an edge to the song that many other artists couldn’t match. The song’s message is that if you work “in the dark against your fellow man… sooner or later god’ll cut you down” meaning that all evil deeds will be punished and you can never escape the dark things you’ve done.

The theme of light vs. dark is prevalent in the entire song. While darkness is personified by men such as the “midnight rider” and the “long tongue liar”, light is represented by the ultimate power of good, in this case God. Symbolizing that the righteousness of God is more powerful than the darkness of men and that in the end the light will prevail and cut down the darkness.

You can run on for a long time

Run on for a long time

Sooner or later God'll cut you down

Go tell that long tongue liar

Go and tell that midnight rider

Tell the rambler, the gambler, the back biter

Tell 'em that God's gonna cut 'em down

Well my goodness gracious let me tell you the news

My head's been wet with the midnight dew

I've been down on bended knee talkin' to the man from Galilee

He spoke to me in the voice so sweet

I thought I heard the shuffle of the angel's feet

He called my name and my heart stood still

When he said, "John go do My will!"

Go tell that long tongue liar

Go and tell that midnight rider

Tell the rambler, the gambler, the back biter

Tell 'em that God's gonna cut 'em down

You can run on for a long time

Run on for a long time

Sooner or later God'll cut you down

Well you may throw your rock and hide your hand

Workin' in the dark against your fellow man

But as sure as God made black and white

What's done in the dark will be brought to the light

You can run on for a long time

Run on for a long time

Sooner or later God'll cut you down

Go tell that long tongue liar

Go and tell that midnight rider

Tell the rambler, the gambler, the back biter

Tell 'em that God's gonna cut you down

El Tres De Mayo

Goya, Francisco. El Tres De Mayo. 1814. Oil on canvas. Prado Museum, Madrid.

Goya’s painting, El Tres De Mayo, depicts random executions of Spanish citizens resulting from fighting that broke out in the Puerto del Sol area of Madrid between the Spanish and the French occupiers. Soon thereafter a national uprising spread across Spain and El Tres De Mayo became one of the main symbols of the rebels as they fought to drive out the French.

The elements of light vs. dark are fairly obvious in the technique of the painting. The French are painted in dark blues, grays and blacks, emphasizing their oppressiveness, while the Spanish citizen, facing his death, arms spread wide in defiance, is painted in bright whites and yellows, creating a feeling of hope and peace emanating from the central figure of the painting. Also an insight into the overall feel of Spain at the time can be deduced by the dark colors of the background. Showing that throughout Spain darkness was dominant under the brutality of the French occupation.

Descent of Angels

Scanlon, Mitchel. Descent of Angels. Nottingham: BL Pub., 2007. Print

Caliban, a dark world of primal forests and monstrous beasts, here mankind struggles to survive. It is the 31st millennium, mankind has long since left its birth rock and stretched out across the stars in a golden age of colonization and scientific progress, but as with all things it could not last. Soon civil war erupted and as brother fought brother whole planets became consumed by fire as the darkness of The Age of Strife settled over mankind. Millennia past by and as the ages went on the people of Caliban devolved into a feudal society, struggling generation after generation to survive the harsh, beast infested, forests of Caliban. Out of the darkness rose The Order, a knightly group of men dedicated to the defense of Caliban's people. The Order was lead by a man named Lion El’Johnson. A warrior, intellect, and man without peer Lion El’Johnson lead The Order on a crusade to rid Caliban of the Great Beasts and it is here, after his training and initiation, which the protagonist, Zahariel, joins with Lion on his quest. As the crusade reaches its conclusion the future of the people of Caliban seems bright but the destruction of the beasts threatens to remove the purpose of the knightly orders. What will become of The Order and of Zahariel? The answer to those questions roars in on wings of fire as the Emperor and his angels descend from the heavens to reclaim his lost son, the super human Lion. Here Lion is shown his true purpose, to help his father reunite the lost fragments of humanity and protect them from the evils that lie within the cosmos. Lion and his Order join with the Emperor and become the Dark Angels Astartes, post human warriors charged with conducting the Great Crusade in the Emperors name, and they soon learn that the cosmos is full of beasts far worse than the beasts of Caliban and that only the light of the Emperor can truly defeat them.

Darkness and light, both elements are abundant throughout Descent of Angels. Darkness through out the novel is represented by the forest itself and is brought to life in the form of the Great Beasts who destroy and devour the helpless citizens of Caliban. Light is represented throughout the novel by Zhariel and Lion, both of whom believe that they can overcome the evils of the Beasts and provide a better future for the people of Caliban. The struggle between the two forces of Light and Dark culminates with the destruction of the Beasts and the arrival of the Emperor who shows Lion and Zhariel that the fight against evil is an ongoing struggle and that they are destined to join him in reuniting and protecting humanity across the stars.

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi.

Dir. Richard Marquand. By George Lucas and Lawrence Kasdan. Perf. Mark Hammill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, and David Prowse. Lucas Film, 1983. DVD.

The galaxy is at war, the forces of the Empire and the Rebels clash at every turn and the flames of war threaten to overwhelm both sides but since the destruction of the Death Star, a space station fortress with the power to destroy entire planets, the Rebels now have a fighting chance to defeat the evil Empire. Meanwhile the Empire begins construction on a new Death Star that is many times larger and stronger than its predecessor, which they will use to crush the Rebels and maintain their iron grip on Imperial space. The protagonists, Luke, Han, and Leia, reunite after the group saves Han from the gangster Jabba the Hutt and soon they regroup with the rebel fleet which is en route to destroy the Imperial super weapon before its completion. They arrive in the Endor system where they find the Death Star but it is shielded and it cannot be attacked until the shield generators have been destroyed. Han leads the ground team to destroy the shields on the surface of Endor while Lando Calrissian leads the fighter attack on the battle station. Luke then surrenders himself to Lord Vader, his father and dark apprentice to the evil Emperor, who then takes him before the Emperor who seeks to corrupt the young warrior and turn him to the Dark Side. Luke resists and the Emperor tries to kill him but upon seeing his son fight for what he believes Darth Vader turns on his master and kills him instead, saving his son and causing the downfall of the Galactic Empire.

The theme of light vs. dark is very prevalent throughout the film. Luke and the Rebels represent all that is good, such as friendship, love, order by law, etc., while the Empire represents darkness with themes such as hatred, corruption and ruthlessness. The theme of light vs dark also appears in the struggle between the Jedi, a faction of warriors who use the Force for good and help to keep the peace, and the Sith, dark lords who only wish to use the force for personal gain and power. But ultimately at the end of the film the evil Emperor is killed and Darth Vader turns from the darkness showing that above all else and against all obstacles, good will prevail.