I've been tinkering a bit with the blog site, putting together a new page and ran across a post written, oh, a while ago. After fixin' it up with pictures after the first one's disappeared I read through it and thought, "Wow, that was pretty profound. I wonder who I plagiarized to write this one?" Actually, I thought it could be a great discussion piece, so I'm re-posting it for your consideration. Many of you might think me an idiot for my conclusions here, but I stand by them. So, without further ado...
Women are from Venus, Men are from Sparta
I've seen the movie 300 four or five times. It's a movie based on a graphic novel that's based on an actual historical event from the year 480 BC, so we know the movie is factually true. If we've learned anything from watching Oliver Stone movies it's that everything that comes out of Hollywood is factually true. 300 recounts the factual events that took place during the Battle of Thermopylae, when Greece, led by the Spartan king Leonidas and 300 warriors, held up the advance of the overwhelming force of the Persian Empire for seven grueling and hard fought days. Between the information I gleaned from the movie and from Wikipedia I know this to be factually true, since we know both Hollywood and Wikipedia are reliable sources for gleaning information. I hope that I have sufficiently established the historical reliability of 300 so that I can get on with what I really want to say; this being that 300 is probably the most romantic movie I've ever seen.Blasphemy, you say! In the pantheon of great romantic movies what drives someone to such a ridiculous conclusion, you further say! How did he ever get married, you further, further say! OK, I'll try to enlighten you as to how I've reached such an outlandish position, and hope to quell any matrimonial disharmony this blog post might cause.
I'm sure you have heard of the book, Men are From Mars, Women are From Venus and if you haven't it probably means you're not married. I find it laying around the house at different strategically placed locations. I assume because someone wants me to read it. It was good thinking to put it in the bathroom because it did get a cursory perusal several times and I think I get the gist of it. Men and women are different. Not just anatomically, but in so many other ways. The secret to a successful relationship with the opposite sex is recognizing those differences, accepting those differences and learning how to respect those differences. OK, that's my personal synopsis based on a few bathroom trips, but I think I'm pretty close.
A bit of a side bar here-- the planet Venus was named after the Greek goddess of beauty and love. Martians are considered to be green, glob-like monstrosities out to destroy the Earth. Am I wrong to be slightly offended by the imagery put forth by the book's title?
The first thing I think of when I consider the relationship between Loenidas and Gorgo is here are two people that really get each other. They seem to know and respect what makes the other tick. Leonidas respects his wife and seeks her counsel more than once. Gorgo recognizes Leonidas' strengths and encourages them. In the scene where Loenidas marches off to war Gorgo removes her necklace and hands it to him. No words are exchanged. Nothing needed to be said because the viewer knew these two mutually loved, respected and admired each other. Then, as Loenidas turned to leave his wife for what would be the last time she says; "Spartan, come back with your shield, or come back on it". Wow! That's got to be one of the hottest lines ever uttered on the big screen! When Dilios, one of the 300, returns the necklace back to Gorgo, nothing is said. She understands that as Leonidas faced death he thought of her. Now, you tell me that's not romantic. (And there's the scene where they share their amorous affection for each other and get all freaky, just sayin'.)
Now, let's consider the other two. First, there is the spoiled debutante brat who can't make up her mind and likes to hit people. Second, the badly bearded, obsessive, brooding pouter that likes to deal with the loss of his love by drowning in wine and women. Sure, he refurbished that house, but go and tell your love interest that you coped with their absence by getting drunk all the time and sleeping with other women and see how far that gets you. The only sensible person in the movie was her fiancé when he said he loved her and wanted her to be happy, so he sent her back to the pouter. Something tells me he lived happily ever after. Then, when she had developed Alzheimer's in her latter years he terrorized her every day by recounting their story until she remembered, then forgot again, leading her to freak out and have to be medicated. True love or true obsession?
Ok, I get it with The Notebook. I'll even admit I teared up at the end. If there were ever two make believe characters that were perfect for each other it was those two from The Notebook. The point here is that men and women can look at these movies and get different things from them. Let me reiterate, men and women are different. Men and women will forever have different perspectives on what's romantic. Actually, they will have different perspectives on everything! You want proof, just watch these two movies. Then discuss them. Just don't resort to violence.
I think the key to understanding your better half is actually somewhere between what makes these movies different. When we understand that women are from Venus (or maybe South Carolina) and men want to be from Sparta (why Mars?), we might begin to see that person hogging the other side of the bed in a different light. It might even help us respect and admire them. It's what makes us different that makes us intriguing. I say embrace the differences.
I'm sure my wife would like me to have those Spartan six-pack abs, but that ain't happenin'.
I say for Sparta and for Glory (put that in your notebook)!
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