Making Connections: To Rule with Force or Honesty 

"The Sultan's Dilemma" by Tawfiq Al-Hakim

Al-Hakim, Tawfiq. “The Sultan’s Dilemma.” Norton Anthology of World Literature. Lawall, Sarah; Maynard Mack. 2nd ed. Vol. F. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2002. 2574-2582.

      "The Sultan's Dilemma," written by Tawfiq Al-Hakim, is a comical play with a deep meaning about a Sultan who must choose between using the sword to get his way and following the law. Act one of the play starts out with a condemned man tied to a stake making conversation with his executioner. The executioner has been instructed to kill the man at dawn, which is signaled by the Muezzin calling the town to dawn prayer from the mosque. The executioner suggests that the condemned man buy them both a glass of wine from the wine merchant across the street. (The executioner tells the condemned man that if he drinks before he has to execute someone, his chops are cleaner and less messy, which of course is appealing to the condemned man that faces the executioner's ax at dawn). The condemned man ends up drinking both glasses of wine the condemned man had bought, and after a while, he decides to sing for the man. His singing disturbs the maid across the street who works for a beautiful lady who is believed to be a prostitute, due to her constant exchange of men in and out of her household. After bickering, the lady and her maid come down to the square and demand an apology. The executioner demands that THEY apologize for ruining his buzz, and makes them buy him more wine from the merchant. In the mean time, the lady strikes up a conversation with the condemned man on how he never even received a trial. She learns that the executioner must wait until the Muezzin calls the town to morning prayer at dawn. The lady sees the Muezzin approaching, so she devises a clever plan to save the condemned man who had not been fairly tried.She invites the Muezzin inside her home for a drink. After dawn had shortly passed, the Vizier appears and asks why the condemned man had not yet been executed. The Muezzin reappears, and claims that he had given the call to morning prayers, but the executioner had been drunk and hadn't heard it. This major diversion is enough to temporarily spare the life of the condemned man and allow him to withstand trial with the Chief Cadi. As it turns out, the man had been condemned because he claimed that the Sultan was a slave, and he had not been manumitted. He says he knows this because he was the slave trader who sold the sultan to his family. The late Sultan had indeed forgotten to manumit him before he died, so it becomes known to the Sultan and his staff that he is still a slave, and therefore not legally allowed to rule. The only options for them at this point is to either use the force of their swords to scare the people into following him despite his slave label, or he could go about the process the legal way: putting the Sultan up for sale at an auction to be auctioned off to the highest bidder in town. Many seem to think that he should just rule with brute force and scare everyone to fix this issue, but the Sultan ultimately makes the decision to do things the legal way, because he knows that the people look to him to enforce the law, and he believes that having the people's respect is the best way to rule. Luckily, the tricky, beautiful lady ends up winning him at the auction. The conditions for the sale are absurd, stating that once you purchase the Sultan, you have to sign his manumission and let him be free. The lady argues with the Sultan and his staff, and eventually reaches an agreement that she can own the Sultan for one full night, but when the call for morning prayer by the Muezzin occurs the next morning, she must sign the deed of manumission. During their night together, they each learn something valuable about one another. The lady is actually not a prostitute at all, she just has a bad name with no justification. She learns that the Sultan is a good man, who rules the  country with fairness and honesty, despite his reputation to be a harsh and unforgiving Sultan. When the finally turn out the lights to go to bed, the Cadi convinces the Muezzin to call the dawn prayers, even though it is only midnight, tricking the lady to have to sign the manumission early. She does as she promised, and it is recognized that she is a good woman. The Sultan gives the lady a ruby from his robe, and he is recognized as an honest and generous man. 

     In "The Sultan's Dilemma," the Sultan faces a huge obstacle : whether to rule with unforgiving force or  kindness and honesty. He has the option of ridding himself of his "dilemma" (being a slave) through the force of his sword. He could have easily chosen to just cut off the tongues of anyone who dared to say that he is a slave and not fit to rule the land. However, he also had the option to follow the law and solve his problem the legal way, just as he would expect his civilians to do. The theme of ruling with force versus honesty is prevalent in this play and in everyday life all around the world. Leaders must choose how they want to gain their respect: to rule with force honesty? 

"Viva La Vida" by Coldplay

Berryman, Guy, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion, and Chris Martin. "Viva La Vida." Perf. Coldplay. Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends. Capital Records. 2008.

     "Viva La Vida" by Coldplay strongly represents the theme of ruling with force versus honesty. This song tells the story of a man who used to rule a kingdom, but had it all fall through cracks as he became nothing more than someone who "sweep[s] the streets [he] used to own". The man in this song had become something wicked, and as the song states,  "People couldn't believe what [he'd] become." This line represents the response that the people had to his corrupt leadership, and as the song goes on to say, now "Revolutionaries wait for [his] head on a silver plate." One of the main lines of the chorus, "Never an honest word and that was when I ruled the world" describes the choice that this ruler had made to side with dishonesty rather than honesty. 

     This song is a fine representation of what can happen with a ruler decides that he is above the people he rules and chooses to act out with force rather than honesty. This goes along with "The Sultan's Dilemma" because it shows what could have happened to the Sultan had he chosen to be dishonest and break his own laws to solve his problem. People do not want a leader who thinks he/she is better than everyone else; rather, they seek out leadership in people who hold themselves to the same standards that everyone else is held to. If a leader breaks his own laws, what kind of example does this set for his/her people? 

    "Viva La Vida"

I used to rule the world

Seas would rise when I gave the word

Now in the morning I sleep alone

Sweep the streets I used to own

I used to roll the dice

Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes

Listen as the crowd would sing

"Now the old king is dead! Long live the king!"

One minute I held the key

Next the walls were closed on me

And I discovered that my castles stand

Upon pillars of salt and pillars of sand

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing

Roman Cavalry choirs are singing

Be my mirror, my sword and shield

My missionaries in a foreign field

For some reason I can't explain

Once you go there was never

Never an honest word

And that was when I ruled the world

It was the wicked and wild wind

Blew down the doors to let me in

Shattered windows and the sound of drums

People couldn't believe what I'd become

Revolutionaries wait

For my head on a silver plate

Just a puppet on a lonely string

Oh who would ever want to be king?

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing

Roman Cavalry choirs are singing

Be my mirror, my sword and shield

My missionaries in a foreign field

For some reason I can't explain

I know Saint Peter won't call my name

Never an honest word

But that was when I ruled the world

I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing

Roman Cavalry choirs are singing

Be my mirror, my sword and shield

My missionaries in a foreign field

For some reason I can't explain

I know Saint Peter won't call my name

Never an honest word

But that was when I ruled the world

The Good and Evil Angels by: William Blake

Blake, William. The Good and Evil Angels. 1795/c.1805. Tate Gallery, London, United Kingdoms. Tate. Web. 28 March 2013. 

     The Good and Evil Angels is a creative painting made by the famous English artist William Blake. The exact year this painting was made is unknown, but it is known to have been painted between 1795 and 1805. The painting shows an evil angel chained to hell reaching for an innocent baby that is being held by a good angle. The painting reflects the common dilemma in society of good versus evil. There is great symbolism within this painting. The baby represents a person who is being torn between choosing what is right and what is wrong. What is wrong is depicted by the "evil angel" and what is right is depicted by the "good angel". Perhaps William Blake was even putting forth his opinion on whether people are born naturally good or naturally evil. He has painted the baby in the arms of the good angle, so it could be derived that he believes everyone is born good, but that people are tempted with doing the wrong thing and frequently fall into making wrong decisions.
     This painting is an excellent demonstration of good versus bad. The theme of ruling with force versus honesty is only an extension of what is good versus what is bad. The baby in this picture can be thought of as the Sultan in "The Sultan's Dilemma." He is having to choose between right and wrong: ruling with force or ruling with honesty. The good angel represents the decision to be honest and follow the laws of his people, while the evil angel represents the decision to rule with his sword. Because the good angel is holding the baby, and the Sultan (being the baby in the above painting) chose the "good path" of being honest, this supports William Blake's possible opinion that the root of every person's soul is naturally good.
          
http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/blake-the-good-and-evil-angels-n05057

Flight

Flight. Dir. Robert Zemeckis. Perf. Denzel Washington, Nadine Velazquez, and Don Cheadle.  Paramount Pictures, 2012. Film.

    

      Whip Whitfield, the main character of this movie, is a pilot for a commercial airline. During one of his flights, a mechanical error in the plane causes him to basically lose all control of the plane. He has no choice but to crash the plane, but he did it with such great skill that it only killed four passengers and two staff members on his flight. Unfortunately for Whip, he wakes up in a hospital with a lawyer explaining that he will face criminal charges because the found drugs  and alcohol in his blood. It is true that the night before he had an episode of binge drinking with one of his airline crew members, and it happened to be one of the crew members that was killed in the accident. To get rid of his hangover the morning of his flight, he snorted cocaine. He  had also stolen two bottles of alcohol from the drink service on the plane and drank these while he was in flight. He at first testifies that the test in the hospital was inaccurate and that he was completely clean during  the flight. There is a great deal of controversy, because it was not his fault that the plane crashed, despite his alcohol and drug abuse. The plane had a defect in the engine, and Whip actually saved several lives by landing the plane in such an amazing and miraculous way.  Despite this, people still want him charged for flying an aircraft with drugs and alcohol in his blood. His lawyer warns him to stay clean during the investigation, but Whip struggles with alcohol and drug addictions that prove to be too much for him to handle. During a  hearing, it is determined that the cause of the plane's accident was in fact due to a faulty part that had not been repaired by the airline company. This seems to get Whip off the hook, but then the opposing lawyer brings up the findings of two empty liquor bottles in one of the trash cans near the pilot's cabin. Whip's blood test had been thrown out because his lawyer argued that the test was faulty and could not be considered. This left only one other member of the flight  crew that could have drank the bottles: the attendant he had drank and slept with the night before. Whip is faced with a huge decision to make: blame this on the deceased flight attendant and shame her and her family, or take the blame (because it was really him who had drank these bottles during the flight). Ultimately , he confesses to his alcohol problems, choosing to take the blame for drinking during the flight. He is sentenced to prison, but he becomes clean there and gains trust of his family back. 

     The theme of good versus bad and ruling with force versus honesty is prevalent throughout this film. As a pilot, Whip had the resources and surrounding lawyers and staff to get him out of his trouble if he had just agreed to lie. This same situation occurred in "The Sultan's Dilemma" when the Sultan is advised by part of his staff to use force instead of doing things the honest way. The Sultan ultimately chose honesty, just as the main character Whip did in Flight. The Sultan was able to derive great respect for himself by following through with things the legal and  honest way, and Whip was able to regain the trust of his family by being honest about his problems. In the end of both of these great stories, good prevailed over evil. In life, it is easy to take the "easy way out" and use your influences and power to get you out of hard spots in life, but it is always best to do things the honest way and show others that you can lead through an example of integrity and honesty.