Religion In The 18th Century

The eighteenth century was an extremely influential and important time in history for Spain. It was the midst of the Spanish Inquisition and great change was rapidly overtaking the country. Milos Forman’s film GOYA’S GHOSTS, portrayed in the year 1792, beautifully highlights this progressive era. It is seen through the eyes of a great spanish painter named Francisco Goya, played by Stellan Skarsgård, who constantly watches the harsh realities of the Catholic church throughout the entire film. Goya also befriends the two other main characters in the movie, Brother Lorenzo, a passionate, fanatical man, played by Javier Bardem, and Ines, a beautiful, young woman accused of heresy, played by Natalie Portman. Through these three character’s tragic dilemmas, Goya, Lorenzo, and Ines, we see the theme of great power in the Catholic church in the eighteenth century.
He is in strong support of the Inquisition and convinces the leaders to strictly punish and question anyone accused of heresy. When Portman’s character Ines is wrongly accused of practicing Jewish rituals, simply for the fact that she refused to eat pork because she did not like the taste, she is quickly tortured by the church monarchy. The scene of Ines’ brutal punishment, and her false confession prove how the church officials would go to any length to make an example out of their people. With just a simple, but powerful suggestion, Lorenzo has a young woman locked up for fifteen years, through the dominant say of the