Light Vs. Darkness Archetype

The Light vs Darkness archetype, can be found in many other works of literature and movies, which show its overwhelming significance. Indeed, it is possible to see light vs dark in many piece of British literature. For example in the classic Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. Sense and Sensibility is a book first published in 1811 so it is not the newest example but it is still 200 years after the first performance of Romeo and Juliet. Sense and Sensibility is a book about these two sisters Elinor, the eldest one and Marianne Dashwood. During the book these two sister face many challenges that reveal the different way they think and act in certain situations. Elinor acts more based on her mind and what should be done instead on what she

wants to do. While Marianne, being the complete opposite of her sister, is more reckless and lead by her emotions instead than her mind. Another example of the archetype present in the British literature can be with the fantasy book of Harry Potter. The Harry Potter series it’s a story about Harry Potter, the chosen one and his eternal enemy Voldemort, the most powerful and evil wizard of the century. All the books lead to the last battle when Harry finally beats Voldemort and all his evil followers. It is noticeable, that in both cases two opposites are affronting each other. In the first case, Sense and Sensibility, where the name itself is an example of the archetype light vs dark. The two sisters being completely opposite dealing with love in their own different ways. The second case, contains a literal light vs dark since there is the fatal Battle of Hogwarts where Harry ultimately kills Voldemort. These two work of literature that between each other have two hundred years of history, and were both published much time after Romeo and Juliet, are the more recent personification of this archetype. Point often overlooked, is that many movies have the concept of light vs dark in them. One example that should definitely be mentioned is Star Wars. It is the constant battle inside every jedi to resist to the pull of the dark side that expresses the most the archetype. Young and old jedis are constantly warned against the lure of the dark side. Another movie that contains the light vs dark archetype is the Beauty and the Beast. Even if it wasn’t originally created as a movie this essay is going to focus on the Disney version of it.

This tale is another example where the name itself shows the presence of the light vs dark archetype in the story. There is beauty of the village, the nice girl that is so brave to go and defy the wild beast to save her father. And after, the beast, a beautiful man turned into a hideous creature because of his selfish character. For these reasons, it is believable that these two classical rocks in the history of cinema have this archetype in them. In Star Wars there is not one specific movie that has dark vs light but the whole idea of the force and its dark side and how it captured even Anakin Skywalker, Darth Vader, the one everybody thought was going to defeat the Sith and restore balance in the force, is a perfect representation of this archetype. The two sides of the force are like the two sides of a medal, always existing, always confining with each other, and Anakin Skywalker was the one who joined them together when he went to the Dark Side. The Beauty and the Beast, as in Sense and Sensibility, shows right from the beginning, from just reading the title, the existence of a contrast, of opposites crossing each other. The two main characters meet and they, against what everyone was expecting, fall in love. In the Beauty and the

Beast. Even if these two examples just explained aren’t written pieces, and are not the newest product, since Star Wars was produced in 1977 and the Beauty and the Beast in 1991, they still contain light vs dark. To remember, that even if the previous examples are more recent works of literature, the light vs dark can be found in even older texts than Romeo and Juliet.

One example of this is the Bible. The Bible is the religious text that contains all the stories and believes of the Christian religion. In the Bible it is present many times the menace of the Devil and how manipulating he can be. The story of Lucifer itself is a demonstration of the light vs dark archetype. Lucifer was the most powerful celestial being after God. His power was immense (Preparing for Eternity). But after, as this lines from the Bible show, he decided to claim himself as higher than God, as more powerful than the Creator: “How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low! You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit on the mount of assembly on the heights of Zaphon; I will ascend to the tops of the clouds, I will make myself like the Most High”(Isaiah 14:12-14). Lucifer, the lightbearer, decided not to stand under God’s dominion. For this reason, the light vs dark archetype can be seen in Lucifer as in the Bible. He was the preferred from God, the next in line after him, but then he changed. He wanted more power, he wanted to be the one deciding for himself not God deciding for everybody, so he turned into a

demon. He tinted is white purity with black rebellion. He changed into the complete opposite of what he was created for. That choice makes him and the Bible, the perfect embodiment for this archetype. Given these points, The presence of the light vs dark can’t be discussed since it is obvious it's consistence in history, shared in varied forms, such as films, books and religious manuscripts.