Retaliation - Revenge in The Arts

Revenge in The Arts

Revenge is a popular subject in literature, drama, and other arts. Notable examples include the plays Hamlet and Othello by William Shakespeare, the novel The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, and the short story "The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allan Poe. Other examples are the Greek myths of Medea, the painting Herodias' Revenge by Juan de Flandes, the opera Don Giovanni by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and the novel The Princess Bride by William Goldman. In Japanese art, revenge is a theme in various woodblock prints depicting the Revenge of the Forty-Seven Ronin by many well-known and influential artists, including Kuniyoshi. The Chinese playwright Ji Junxiang used revenge as the central theme his theatrical work The Orphan of Zhao; it depicts more specifically familial revenge, which is placed in the context of Confucian morality and social hierarchal structure.

Some modern societies use tales of revenge to provide catharsis, or to condition their members against acting out of desire for retribution. In many of these works, tragedy is compounded when the person seeking revenge realizes he/she has become what he/she wished to destroy. However, in others, the consummation is depicted as satisfying and cathartic.

In Matthew Stover's novelization of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, Emperor Palpataine and Anakin Skywalker have a conversation regarding the rightness or wrongness of revenge. When Anakin states that the actions he himself have taken in revenge are wrong, Palpatine tells him that "Revenge is the foundation of justice. Justice began with revenge, and revenge is still the only justice some beings can ever hope for."

Revenge is the central theme of the ABC television series Revenge. It is the story of Emily Thorne, a young woman played by the charismatic Emily VanCamp who takes revenge on those who killed her father. Revenge is a central theme of the CBS television series The Mentalist. In this series, the titular mentalist, Patrick Jane, desires revenge upon the notorious serial killer Red John for the murder of his wife and daughter, despite the insistence of his colleague in the California Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Teresa Lisbon, that revenge is wrong. The two have a number of conversations regarding the matter, but Patrick Jane retains his belief that only revenge can compensate him for what Red John has done to him. In one installment of the series, Patrick Jane tells the victim of the crimes that the CBI is investigating that revenge is wrong, only to later admit to Lisbon that he didn't believe a word he was saying.