On Masculinity: Leonidas
The eternal battle against the seduction of pleasure and power
What does it mean to be a Man? There has never been a time in history when this question hasn’t been relevant and today is no different.
Greetings Dear Reader,
Welcome to my series ‘On Masculinity’. Here I’ll be analysing a selection of male characters in popular media that I consider to be powerful embodiments of the sacred masculine, as well as examples that have helped me shape a vision of masculinity that society, culture and especially our own fathers, have failed to provide. This series will draw heavily from psychology, archetypes and spirituality.
The Mythology of 300
Rediscovering the movie ‘300’ (Zack Snyder, 2007, Warner Bros.) again has been beautiful. I’m a fan. Visually, every scene is like a painting and the story is a powerful metaphor about the struggle of a King valuing freedom above the seductions of pleasure and power.
If you’ve read any of my other articles, you’ll know I tend to see things through a symbolic lens and this is no different. I want to take a look at the main character Leonidas, portrayed by Gerald Butler, through the perspective of masculine psychology, with helpful literature such as ‘He: Understanding Masculine Psychology’ by R.A.Johnson (1974) and ‘King, Warrior, Magician, Lover’ by Moore&Gillette (1990). These two works draw heavily from Jungian psychology and they’ve been powerful guides in my own journey as a man and human. I won’t be discussing the books themselves but I highly recommend them to anyone in search of the deeper layers of their own psyche/soul.
Obviously 300 isn’t meant to be a historical movie, nor is the comic that’s been adapted from. It uses history as a loose disguise for what is, at its core, an eternal story. Given this, I’d like to place this work under the umbrella of ‘mythology’ and I will do the same for the other works I’ll be looking at in this series.
Leonidas
If you’re here you’ve probably seen the movie more than once and, if you haven’t, this is your sign to check it out. That needs to be said since I will be going into spoilers.
Leonidas is the King of ancient Sparta between 489–480BC. He isn’t just a King, but also a Warrior and a Father. I capitalise these terms because they’re fundamental aspects and parts of the greater whole that is the soul of every man.
As the movie goes, the Persian empire is about to attack Greece. The politics of Sparta stop Leonidas from actually mobilising the entire army, so he takes three hundred of his best men (all men that have fathered sons) and departs to a location that allows them to hold a strategically defensive position against the seemingly infinite armies of the Persians. Leonidas knows from the very beginning that this is a one-way trip and the best he can hope for is to buy time for his nation to hopefully find their senses instead of arguing useless politics and traditions.
Then there is the famous ‘beautiful death’, a sacrifice of one’s life in exchange for immortal glory. This was an ideal of Spartan thought, and I find it interestingly similar to the glory in death sought by Viking warriors (can you guess which other character comes next in this series?) Leonidas and his three hundred embrace this fate willingly and numerous times the characters are portrayed as actively looking forward to it. By the end their deaths allow time for the rest of Sparta to raise their army and the movie concludes with their story of sacrifice actively transforming into legend.
“In order for Man psychology to come into being for any particular man, there needs to be a death. Death — symbolic, psychological or spiritual — is always a vital part of any initiatory ritual. In psychological terms, the boy Ego must ‘die’.” (King, Warrior, Magician, Lover, Moore&Gillette, Harpercollins, 1991)
The Kingdom
Before Leonidas leaves his wife and son behind (a male heir that symbolises his legacy), there’s a beautiful scene in which he contemplates his kingdom. He looks at the women and children of Sparta, his wife and the land he has a duty to protect. In that moment he knows what his sacrifice is worth.
Sparta is shown as an almost-heavenly, sacred and bountiful land and the term is often interchanged with ‘Greece’ itself. Historically, the movie is set in a time of fierce conflict between Greek city-states, so the nation was hardly a peaceful paradise; but again, history isn’t the point here. Leonidas is the symbolic King of Sparta, Greece and the entire world of man, called to fight for it against the army of darkness.
“World is defined as that part of reality that is organised and ordered by the King. What is outside of the boundaries of his influence is noncreation, chaos, the demonic and nonworld.”
Every man is a King. Not every man knows it and many are those ignorant of their kingdoms. The inner soul of a man is his kingdom and Now, as always, he is called to fight for it every day. If a kingdom isn’t fought for, tended to, protected and loved it begins to rot, decay and die. And the world outside of the inner kingdom of man reflects this.
Xerxes, the false god of Pleasure
The Persians in 300 aren’t really a nation, but a representation of the dark seductions of power and pleasure. Their invading armies are always referred to as ‘endless’ and ‘immortal’. They are also portrayed as corrupted, monstrous creatures hiding underneath the shallow allure of material wealth, gold, sex and pleasure.
King Xerxes is the antithesis of Leonidas, his exact opposite. He is depicted as a giant, demonic-like figure that speaks of himself as being ‘merciful’ and ‘kind’. He also believes himself to be a god and demands absolute submission from his subjects. Three times throughout the movie he tries to corrupt the mind of Leonidas, promising him power over the entirety of Greece and endless decadent pleasure. The only thing he has to give up is freedom.
This story isn’t new. It finds a parallel in the Bible with Satan’s efforts to corrupt the hearts of men. There as here, I can dare an attempt at bringing into focus the relation between these seductive forces and the Ego-mind. Taken to its extreme, the most dangerous form of ego inflation is the conviction that it is ‘god’. This means that it, alone, is the ultimate power in the universe and its decisions and desires must be satisfied at whatever cost.
This form of inflation has broken our world more than once; and I believe that all mythologies always warn against it. The Greeks specifically saw ‘Hubris’ as the greatest of all sins, swiftly punished by the Gods. But the point is that hubris inflation is always present as a perennial problem.
The army of Xerxes is always coming to invade. There is never a time in history when it’s not coming, and it is immortal. It is the decadent seduction of ultimate satisfaction of the senses. It tells you that it is kind and merciful and it only demands your ultimate submission.
The question is: how do you, as a man, warrior and king, respond to it? How do you meet it on the battlefield?
Like what you’re reading? Every word you read here is crafted with love and passion (and without AI) and Your support would enable me to spend a whole lot more time doing it. If it feels right consider donating (:
Sacrifice and Freedom
His wish was simple: “Remember us,” he said to me. That was his hope. Should any free soul come across that place, in all the countless centuries yet to be, may all our voices whisper to you from the ageless stones: Go tell the Spartans, passer-by, that here, by Spartan law, we lie. (Dilios in the final scene of 300)
Leonidas gives his life for freedom. But what is freedom?
Through his death, Greece is able to raise an army and eventually repel the invaders. But that’s not all: the story of the three hundred not only echoes throughout time but becomes the ideal, ultimate example for the Spartan soldier. Mythology always survives and, in this particular case, it does so through this movie and the inspiration that has led me to write these words.
Death
Under the psychological approach, we could see the death of Leonidas as the necessary step in the evolution of the psyche. What is old needs to die so the new can grow and develop. In the movie, Leonidas’ son inherits the necklace his father wore in battle, which was in turn a gift from his wife. This represents that the boy now carries onward the integrated legacy of both his parents.
This interpretation is valid but I think there’s more to it. The sacrifice of Leonidas represents the conscious willing choice that is noble. The army of darkness is immortal and unbeatable. History tends to repeats itself, no matter how many times this enemy is defeated. The seduction of corruption is always a danger, every day, in every moment. And defeat occurs by following what is easy and pleasant.
Families, nations and empires fall when men give up. When the king loses his way because of fear. When what is noble and good is twisted beyond recognition and turned into something different. The way the modern ear hears the word ‘King’ and associates it to a useless tyrant sitting on a throne of wealth while others suffer is a sign of this corruption of words.
Against this onslaught it would be easier to give up. To say that the world is doomed and all is lost. That the weather, politics and the tendencies of human nature are insurmountable armies that cannot be defeated. Because it’s true — they can’t be. This darkness will always return, and that is why each and every generation must tend to their own souls/kingdoms and know when and how to defend them.
Conclusion
This war always ends in death. Leonidas reminds us that despite (or because of) that, it is a war that needs to be fought. And that is what the aggression and cultivation of strength inherent in the masculine is for. It’s not for demonstrations of bravado, ego-inflation or for hurting others.
When faced with the fear of an often uncaring and absurd world, the easiest choice would be to give it all up for pleasure or the promise of a false power. But that way leads to slavery and submission to tyrannical forces.
“My father taught me that fear is always a constant, but accepting it is what makes you stronger. In the end, a Spartan’s true strength is the warrior next to him. So give respect and honor to him and it will be returned to you. First, you fight with your head.
…then you fight with your heart.” (Leonidas and his wife to their son)
So here is my invitation, my fellow man: be hopeful, for Leonidas lives in each and every one of us. And when the day of darkness comes, he always picks up his spear and heads to battle.
Blessings,
