“ “What is Enlightenment?” asked the prominent German Intellectual Immanuel Kant. “It is a man’s emergence from his self imposed...inability to use one’s own understanding without another’s guidance...Dare to know! ‘Have the courage to use your own understanding’ is therefore the motto of the enlightenment.’ “” (Ways Of the World). The film “Amadeus” was set during the age of enlightenment. The film depicts the life of Mozart, while subtlety depicting issues related ideals of the Enlightenment. The film takes its audience through Mozart’s life, and shows us the creative stifling Mozart faced, how he overcame such censorship, and the differences between the entertainment cultures of the court and the people.
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H was unable to fully grasp the what it was the court wanted, and the what the people wanted and balance it. The royal court wanted something that will uphold the values of the nation, show tradition, and something classic. This was shown in when Mozart was attempting to convince the royal court with his opera that was to take place in a harem in Turkey. Mozart exclaims, “ I am fed to the teeth with elevated themes! Old dead legends! Why must we go on forever writing about gods and legends?” To which Baron Van Swieten responds, “Because they do. They go on forever. Or at least what they represent. The eternal in us. Opera is here to enoble us. You and me, just the same as His Majesty.” The common people on the other hand wanted something with more bright colors, pizzazz, loud music, comedic, and simple, and easy to follow along. For them shows and operas were more of a form of entertainment. A distractions from their mundane daily life. This was clearly shown in the film when Mozart’s friend had asked him to right something for the his theatre, and Mozart’s wife objected saying that Mozart was of a higher standing than that. There was a big difference in the people of different classes in the way they defined entertainment and