Kody Crider
West in the Pre-Modern
Sagstetter
300 vs The Real Spartans
The movie 300 was produced in 2007, and while the movie does have some historical accuracy, there is a lot added to the movie to create a protagonist feel to the Spartans. During the movie, the Spartans wear almost little to no armor aside from their helmets. Their entire body was left open and vulnerable; this is not entirely accurate. The real Spartans were known to value their armor, and their body was covered in armor making them all look the same. I believe the director did this to add to the warrior vibe of the Spartans and to attempt to put an emphasis on their strength and courage.
Adding to this inaccuracy, another part of the movie that is not entirely true is this protagonist role the Spartans played. While in the movie they were made out to be the good guy and had the audience supporting them, in reality the Spartans were quite cruel. The Spartans would conquer their neighboring lands and enslave the citizens to their labor force. The director most likely did not want to show this side of them because if this was shown in the movie, then it would have changed the whole plot of the story. The Spartans would then have not been the good guys they were made out to be in the movie, and this may have lowered the popularity of the movie.
I believe that using media to teach history is a valid way of learning history because it is modernized and relatable. Our generation is more willing to sit down and watch a movie about history then to open a history book and read it. Although, these modern representations of history may not always be accurate, they give a stage to shine light on the history of the world. 300 is not the most accurate but there are many movies and other forms of entertainment out there that are much more historically accurate and give viewers a true knowledge of the subject. Without this, we would most likely go on without studying or attempting to learn about the history of ancient civilizations which helped shape the world we live in today.
The West in the Pre-Modern World 
Kody, I agree with your statement that in a changing society, movies and media do a great job in enlightening younger generations on what happened in history. Although I agree with you, I feel as though the movies that people tend to enjoy are heavily dramatized. I think it is unsafe to rely on movies to teach history. It may create interest around the topic, but I don’t believe that the majority of people will take the time to figure out the true facts behind what happened. Many people may believe that what happened was true, and walk around with a false sense of knowledge based on a movie that was tweaked to be enjoyable to an audience. I believe that making good movies that are historically accurate is a challenge, as many directors feel as though they need to go over the top in order to create something that people enjoy.
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I wholeheartedly agree that films containing historical accounts are a great way to expose younger generations to the history. I wonder however, if enough caution is taken by the filmmakers when alluding to the accuracy of the movie. I believe that the phrase “based on a true story” is taken to be loosely interpreted by the general public, at least subconsciously, as truth. That is until further knowledge is received from accurate sources. Films of historical events often times seek to inspire their audience, and while this is not always the case, if movies were always to be 100% accurate then they might lose a part of that element. To use your example of the movie 300, the number of Greeks who fought in the Battle of Thermopylae is still widely debated, but the general consensus is that there were more than 300. Assuming that the New World Encyclopedia’s article: Battle of Thermopylae is correct, it would alter the movie title to 300+4900. While this number is still staggeringly less than their foes, the exaggeration of the ratio of Greek to Persian made the Spartans appear more courageous and their feat all the more amazing. In short, the portrayal of historical events in modern day media is an effective way to expose the material to younger generations; but the lack of accuracy and acknowledgment of that lack of accuracy allows misconceptions and error to be carried forward in their minds for years to come, greater care needs to be had when portraying these types of films.
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