Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Biblical References in Pulp Fiction Essay -- Film Movie Quentin Tarant

Pulp Fiction Throughout the movie Pulp Fiction, directed by Quentin Tarantino, there are many hidden references to religion and the Bible. The movie starts off, introducing our two main characters, Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield, as two cheap hitmen in search of a package belonging to their boss, Marcellus Wallace. The package is retrieved, and they then began their job of returning it to their boss. Along the way, they ran into difficulties, such as Vega's so-called "date" with his boss' wife, Mia, during which she overdosed on heroin, and Vega was forced to take her to the drug dealer's house to save her life, as well as the robbers in the restaurant, who try to take the suitcase from Winnfield, but were unsuccessful. The whole movie serves as a warning to all mankind to avoid the temptations of the Devil, as well as a warning to not try to play God, because the two boys who stole the suitcase play the role of the Devil, as do the drugs, and they were almost the downfall of the whole attempt. The movie wasted no time in introducing the first biblical reference when the two men try to retrieve the suitcase containing Wallace's belongings. When Vega opened the suitcase, he used the combination "666" to open the suitcase, and when he opened it, the contents glowed a golden-orange color. This was obviously an introductory attempt to show the audience that the suitcase held Marcellus' soul. Perhaps Tarantino was trying to show that the people that stole the suitcase were the devils pawns, and these two hitmen were angels trying to retrieve stolen property. After Vega and Winnfield had obtained their "treasure," Winnfield quoted the Bible, specifically Ezekiel 25:17, the passage about destroying the evil members of the society that try to harm others for no reason. Part of that passage was "..and you will know my name is the Lord, when I lay my vengeance upon thee." This quote shows that Winnfield sees what he is doing as heroic, or maybe angelic, and by carrying out his duties, he is following the word of the Lord. As Winnfield shot the boy, Brett, an orange-golden glow enveloped the screen, representing Brett's soul leaving his body. This whole part of the movie is to warn the evil-doers of the world to cease their wrongdoings, because there are people out there who will stop them. The next main scene of... ...od, sometimes what he does is not right, and he is trying to be the one that always does the right thing: the shepherd. This is another reason why Jules is not killed off. He realized that he cannot play God, and therefore he is forgiven. Vincent, however, never fully realized this, and he is punished at the end of the story by being killed by Butch. Although cleverly hidden, the signs of biblical inference and the power of God are extremely prevalent in the film. Elements of the plot such as the realization of wrongdoing by Jules, the general feeling that the Wallaces are trying to be all knowing and all powerful, the drug dealer being the downfall as well as the savior for Mia, and the way that Jules and Vincent try to control others lives and are punished for it all show us something. These signs show us that we must do as we think we should, and not try to control anyone but yourself, because if you are busy trying to control others, you may not be tending to yourself, leaving yourself wide open to manipulation by others like yourself. If we mind our own business and take care of ourselves, the world would go a lot smoother, and have many fewer conflicts.

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