Introductory Reflective Essay
At some point in our lives, we’ve all heard the cliché “Nobody’s perfect.” The saying is overwhelmingly stereotyped, but still manages to carry the message that we, human kind, are fundamentally incapable of perfection; we will always make mistakes. The beauty in being wrong lies not in the error of one’s ways, but in the opportunity to redeem oneself, to transform and exemplify decency. Quentin Tarantino is notorious for producing the “unlikely hero”, a character whose past actions were condemnable but eventually sides with righteousness in a moment of opportunity. These characters, in spite of all their flaws, illustrate that even the most dastardly men are capable of redemption.
The two essays in my portfolio revolve around the opportunity for redemption. Jules Winnfield of Pulp Fiction and Colonel Hans Landa of Inglourious Basterds seem rather different from each other to the eye, but together they share a lifestyle synonymous with immorality and mercilessness. Jules and Hans are instruments of destruction, tasked by a superior authority with carrying out moral atrocities. They are professionals, never fazed by the means to the necessary ends, arriving unexpected and sporting tidy uniforms as symbols of their autonomy as agents of death. Their perceived humanity at times seems genuine, forcing us to wonder what kind of men they are when the uniforms are off, an action seemingly representative of in both films as a revealing factor of their morality, as Jules is liberated as he takes his off, but Hans is forever imprisoned.
Both men share a proficiency for killing, but their tactics are not as black and white as one may imagine. Although their professions solicit death as an everyday occurrence, both Jules and Hans focus on the process of killing almost as much as the product. For example, in the opening scenes of each film, both Jules and Hans, respectively, are seen gulping down beverages as a not-so-subtle hint to who’s in charge. The two men revel in their situational superiority, employing mind games and emotional facades to further confuse their victims and increase leverage as means of their own enjoyment.
The most important similarity between Hans Landa and Jules Winnfield exists in each character’s chance for redemption. They both understand the severity of the lifestyles they live, yet continue their vocational paths somewhat blindly as if they have no other options. However, there is a moment for each character in which they can veer off of these paths of darkness, a moment allowing for a moral awakening. Jules and Hans both reach these crossroads. They both see a chance to live for themselves, to ensure their prosperity individually, detached from the restraints of a profession. Ahead, they see new beginnings.
Alas, new beginnings do not constitute the same approaches. Although Jules and Hans are surprisingly similar, there are a great number of distinctive differences between them. Jules operates as a normal guy in a bad guy’s uniform. He kills because he has to, not necessarily because he wants to. Hans, on the other hand, is a demented man in an even more deranged man’s uniform. The worst thing one can give a psychopath like Hans is power, because with power, with such a high rank within Tarantino’s fictional Third Reich, Hans can disguise his truly personal intentions as just the accepted means of his occupation. Unlike Jules, Hans likes to kill. The moral expanse between the men is notable, and will shed light on the direction each of them takes at the crossroads of redemption.
Fate, a fortuitous force, objective in nature, hands two seemingly terrible human beings the chance to change their ways, a chance to leave their pasts behind. These chances offer the same solution but with different presentations. Jules’ is offered as somewhat of a warning, as bullets narrowly miss his face to form an outline of his body on the wall behind him. Hans never has such a direct threat to his life, as he is so far removed from the daily grunt work that Jules partakes in. Hans’ opportunity is packaged as a pair of options: to help his country, or help himself. He ultimately spares his own life by making a deal with the Americans, securing luxuries and immunities as guarantees upon his arrival in the United States.
When we look at Jules and Hans, we see similar situations. We see men handed an opportunity to escape their current lives in exchange for a fresh start. Redemption requires a full commitment, relinquishing past mistakes in their entirety with the awareness of their wrongfulness in a mindset to prevent them in the future. Jules and Hans both seek redemption, but the paths they take will decide who receives it and who does not.