EFL Movie Study Guide for:
The Robe
Story:
A Roman officer
(Richard Burton) “wins” Jesus’ robe by gambling under the cross. Soon, it
seems that the robe is making him crazy. A woman’s love can’t cure his
inner pain, but his slave seems to have found a solution. As the soldier
sets out to destroy the robe, he discovers the truth behind its strange
power. This classic epic is especially popular at Easter time.
(1953; 2 Oscars plus 3
nominations; Richard Burton, Michael Rennie, Victor Mature; 20th
Century Fox; drama; 135 minutes; 1st movie released in
CinemaScope format)
Setting: First century Rome, Capri
and Palestine [巴勒斯坦]
Note: In the first century, Rome
ruled the western world. Many of the people they conquered had been
enslaved, and those fortunate enough to live in Rome lived in great luxury
(at the expense of those elsewhere). The film says that, by this time,
"there are more slaves in Rome than citizens," so there was always fear
that the slaves would join together and revolt against their Roman
masters. Furthermore, a Roman describes Palestine like this: "It is the
worst pest-hole in the Roman Empire; home of a stiff-necked, riotous
people, always on the verge of rebellion. For an officer to be sent there
is like a death sentence."
Nouns/verbs:
crucifixion: to kill someone by nailing or
tying his hands and feet to a wooden cross as a cruel form of public
punishment (common in Roman times)
dagger: a small knife, often hidden in your
clothes or kept handy on your belt
execution: to kill someone with the
authority of a ruler, government, gang leader, etc.
gladiators: slaves who were trained and
then forced to fight to the death to entertain an audience
looter: someone who steals things in a time
of disaster or disorder (such as right after a flood or during a war)
mad: in this film, mad means crazy
(not angry); "During the journey a guiding star became my one link with
sanity; I'm mad."
merchant: a business man; someone who buys
and sells things to make money
nails: [钉子]
small pieces of metal, hammered into wood (etc) to join things together
(also see crucifixion)
sedition: words or actions intended to
bring about rebellion against government authority
sorcery/sorcerer: magic or one who uses
magic (such as to "cast a spell" or curse others); magicians, witches,
sorcerers, etc. have almost always been feared as evil people, whether the
things they do bring bad results or good results (such as healing people
of sickness)
superstition: [迷信]
irrational but strong belief in magic, good/bad luck, omens, etc.
traitor/treason: someone who acts in a
disloyal way, especially if disloyal to his government or other leaders
(which is called treason)
tribute: after a country was conquered, it
sent tribute (gold or precious things) to the new government every
year to prove that they were still loyal
People and proper nouns:
Caligula: the son of Roman Emperor Tiberius
Caesar; Caligula is known as a violent leader and he was probably mentally
ill (in this movie, we see him both before and after his father died)
Capri: an island in the Mediterranean Sea
that was a second home for Tiberius Caesar (and Diana)
Centurion: a middle-level leader in the
Roman army (under officers, but over the enlisted soldiers)
Demetrius: Marcellus' slave; he was strong
willed and ran away from his master while they were in Palestine
Diana: she loves Marcellus and is a ward of
Tiberius Caesar (a ward is like an adopted daughter—a young person
who is under someone else's protection)
Jerusalem: [耶路撒冷]
the ancient capital of Israel; this is the place where Jesus was executed
Justus: an elderly weaver [织布家]
in Cana of Galilee (northern Palestine), who is a kind, community leader
Marcellus: the main character in this film;
he is a Roman officer (Tribune) and the son of an important senator
(government official)
Messiah: In this movie, a Roman officer
offers this description: "The Jews' king, savior, redeemer, Son of their
God…and general troublemaker"; to many Jews and Christians, the Messiah
(or "Christ" in Greek) is one sent from God to restore God's rule on earth
by first saving people from sin and then being their king
Miriam: a singer who has a very pleasant
personality, even though she is crippled (can't walk)
Palestine: a part of the middle-east; at
the time shown in this film, and for over a thousand years before that,
this was the home of the Jewish people (the Romans forced Jews out in AD
70, and Jews did not win the right to return until the UN granted part of
this land to Jews as a homeland in 1947)
Passover: a major, annual Jewish festival
that commemorates (celebrates) the time when millions of Jews were
released from slavery in Egypt (a great movie about this is called The
Ten Commandments)
Pontius Pilate: the Roman governor of
Palestine, who lived in Jerusalem (1st century)
Simon Peter (the Big Fisherman): the
disciple [门徒]
considered to be the first leader of Jesus' followers after he died
Tiberius Caesar: the elderly Roman Emperor
at the time Jesus was killed (1st century)
Tribune: an elected
and respected Roman official; sometimes Tribunes also served as leaders in
the Roman army
Sentences & dialog from the movie
(edited):
1. Demetrius: "Why was he betrayed by one
he loved and trusted?"
Judas: "Because men are weak; because
they are cursed with envy and cowardice. Because they can dream of Truth
but cannot live with it. So they doubt. Why must men betray themselves
with doubts? Tell them they must keep faith!"
2. Miriam: "He asked us to build our lives
on love; to build a new world."
Marcellus: "Worlds are built on force.
Power is all that counts."
Miriam: "Perhaps we have something
better than power. We have hope."
3. Marcellus: "I lost my wits when I put
on the robe."
Doctor: "The clue to this man's sanity
is… in the robe that bewitched him."
Caesar: "Go, find the robe and destroy
it, and for Rome, seek out the followers of this dead magician. I want
names of every man and woman who subscribed to this treason."
4. Caesar: "…miracles, disciples, slaves
running away, Roman legionnaires fraternizing with the natives… [These are
big problems, but] the real danger is man's desire to be free."
5. Caesar: “When [the end of the empire]
comes, this is how it will start. Some obscure martyr in some forgotten
province, then madness. Infecting the legions, rocking the empire, then
the finish of Rome.”
6. Marcellus: "A man is not cheated when
he's satisfied with a price."
Justus: "But you weren't the real
loser. They were only cheating themselves."
7. Miriam's song (notice the use of old
English words like "spake" for spoke and "ye" for you): "…we
came unto the sepulcher [坟墓]
and found the stone rolled away… and a voice spake to us saying 'why seek
ye the living among the dead?'"
8. Marcellus (to Peter): I crucified him.
Peter: I know. Demetrius told me.
Marcellus (shocked): And you can
forgive me?
Peter: He forgave you from the cross.
Can I do less? Now, is there anything stopping you? Can you become one of
us?
Marcellus: From this day forward, I am
enlisted in His service. I offer Him my fortune, my sword, and my life.
And this I pledge to you on my honor as a Roman.
9. Diana (to Caligula): I have no wish to
live another hour in an empire rule by you! You dare to call yourself a
Caesar. Once the Caesars of Rome were noble, but in you, noble blood has
turned to poison. You corrupt Rome with your spite and malice. That you
should be Caesar—vicious, treacherous, drunk with power, an evil, insane
monster posing as emperor… As for me, I have found another king [Jesus]. I
want to go with my husband into his kingdom.
Caligula: Then, by the
gods, you shall! Go, both of you, into your kingdom! (i.e., “I sentence
you both to die immediately.”)
Discussion
1. From the way his family lived, how would
you describe their financial situation? If you had a lot of money, what
would you do with it?
2. Look at dialog 1 above. In every century
and in every culture, people betray and disappoint other people. Why?
3. Look at dialog 2. What is more important
for the progress of civilization: love, power or hope? Power has built
many of history's great civilizations, but like Rome they never last. Why
not?
4. Caligula calls a group: "A secret party
of seditionists; the riffraff [痞子] of the plebeian class
[人民]; a party of conspirators [阴谋家]." Who is he talking about, and do you
agree with this description?
5. Look at dialog 6. What does it mean to
"be cheated"? If a shopkeeper gives you too much change when you buy
something, do you keep it or tell her about the error? In the movie (when
the people accepted too much money from a stupid merchant), who was being
cheated? (Do you agree with Justus?) Explain. What are some ways that
people "cheat themselves"?
6. At the end, Diana made a difficult
choice. Tell us about a difficult choice you had to make, and tell us
where you found the strength to make it.
