**Beware, below be spoilers***
* Mrs. Morrison says "Oh Sergeant, you'll never understand the true meaning of sacrifice." What does she mean?
* Why is Sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
* What is the significance of the names? (e.g. Sgt. Howie notes the names Rachel and Benjamin in the churchyard. The caretaker notes that they were "quite old." The younger girls are named "Rowan," "Willow," and "Myrtle").
* What are the similarities between "The Wicker Man" and "The Bacchae?"
* How does Sgt. Howie resemble Pentheus?
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How does Sgt. Howie resemble Pentheus?
Sgt. Howie and Pentheus are very similar creatures. They preach in live in an apollonian manner yet they let their curiosity get the best of them. Pentheus could not stand to not know what was going on on top of the mountain. Sgt. Howie could not help but be lured in by the beauty of a woman. While Pentheus lowers himself to dressing like a woman, Sgt. Howie allows his virgin body to dance and be arroused by a woman. Their Apollonian ways are set aside for their own curiosity.
Why is Sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
Sgt. Howie was the perfect sacrifice because he was a virgin and he was the one that was searching for Rowan, who was the haunted.
*Mrs. Morrison says "Oh Sergeant, you'll never understand the true meaning of sacrifice."What does she mean?
-Mrs. Morrison is saying that Sgt. Howie does not understand that to sacrifice,one must take a risk by giving up something special whether it is an animal or even a person one cares immensily about not really nothing if the sacrifice will be in vain or not. She feels he is unable to understand this because he only sees his way as right, ignoring the fact that his way might not be the only right way. We see this throughout the movie when he puts down the islander's religion and basically preaches that christianity is the only right religion.
* Mrs. Morrison says "Oh Sergeant, you'll never understand the true meaning of sacrifice." What does she mean?
Sgt. Howie wouldn't understand sacrifice because he is a man who feels very strong about his religion, (Christianity) and only his religion. He puts down the islanders religion and preaches to them that Christianity is the only way to go, and that they are mad for believing in their ways.
Why is Sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
The word sacrifice means to make sacred. He is a virgin, and therefore would be a perfect sacrificial offering - virgins represent purity.
How does Sgt. Howie resemble Pentheus?
Sgt. Howie's curiosity of the people and traditions of Summerisle is reminiscent of the curiosity Pentheus has for the unknown happenings in the mountains outside of Thebes. Both are pretty much alone in the unknown areas of Summerisle/the mountains. Lastly, both are virgins (presumably) and their sexual innocence propels their insatiable curiosity in Pentheus' overwhelming desire to witness the orgies in the mountains (as he believes), and Sgt. Howie's..erm...moment in the bedroom while the landlord's daughter dances next door.
*Why is Sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
First, he is a virgin. He also embodies "the Fool" who becomes "King for a Day". In his search for Rowan, he becomes the sacrifice through the rules set by the Pagans for May Day. When he tries to talk to Lord Summerville about being set free, Lord Summerville uses Sgt. Howie's religion (Christianity) to justify using him as a sacrifice. As if to give Sgt. Howie a piece of mind by stating that he would receive a martyr's death. In the end, Sgt. Howie symbolizes the virgin and the fool.
How is Sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
Sgt. Howie is the perfect sacrifice because he represents many of the Apollonian traits that we have been discussing in class. He is lured to Summerisle with the good intentions of finding Rowan Morrison. He is a straight-laced man and very devoted Christian. He is a virgin and is therefore considered pure. This is exactly what the people were looking for. All of these qualities make him the perfect sacrifice.
How is Sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
Howie is the perfect sacrifice because he is truly everything the people of Summerisle are looking for. He's a virgin, and he believes in salvation after his death. Traditionally, the Punch character is the one that would be "sacrificed" Punch is the "King for the day" and a fool. Howie played into the fool role perfectly, with Lord Summerisle controlling his every move.
How does Sgt. Howie resemble Pentheus?
Sgt. Howie resembles Pentheus in that both might not be considered men in both their societies. For Pentheus he had not yet grown a beard and in his culture a beard signified manhood. Sgt. Howie was a still a virgin even though he about forty years old. Both characters rejected the religions they did not believe in, but were attracted to them. Sgt. Howie and Pentheus are both killed after their disguises are uncovered. Both these characters were set up to die, at the begging of the movie and play.
Why is sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
Sgt. Howie is the perfect sacrfice because he is a virgin man.. You can tell throughout the movie he is a virgin by the way he acts and exposes himself towards the girl. Being a virgin makes him the perfect sacrfice because he is pure and being pure reflects on being a virgin. He would be the perfect sacrifice for the people of
* What is the significance of the names? (e.g. Sgt. Howie notes the names Rachel and Benjamin in the churchyard. The caretaker notes that they were "quite old." The younger girls are named "Rowan," "Willow," and "Myrtle").
Sgt. Howie comes to the island with a christian background and with christian views. He is suprised to find that the island has very little christianity in it. The people of the island have moved on from christian beliefs to more naturistic beliefs. This is represented by the older deaths being biblical names(Rachel and Benjamin) and the newer names being the names of trees (Rowan, Willow, and Myrtle).
How can she tell him that he does not understand the meaning of sacrifice? The town people are not giving up anyting by sacfificing him because he means nothing to them. Sacrifice is suppost to be something you would feel a loss of once it is gone. I suppose that she means that he will never understand their meaning of "sacrifice." Which is a sacrifice to please a god. This is funny to tell a Christian because they find salvation through ultimate sacrifice. (according to Christian belief)
Why is Sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
Sgt. Howie is the perfect sacrifice for the people because not only do they get to save Rowan, (a possible sacrifice in the future) but they continue to sacrifice a virgin. Because Sgt. Howie is a grown man, his sacrifice may somehow be worth more to the people in the sense that any young girl is usually a virgin, but it takes more faith and persistance for a man to remain a virgin well into his late 40s (appx. age of Sgt. Howie?). The people on the Island probably saw his arrival to mean one thing: the ultimate sacrifice. If only the Sgt. had given in to Willow's temptation, he probably would have left the island scott free. Sgt. Howie's immense willpower is ultimately what ended up killing him.
* How does Sgt. Howie resemble Pentheus?
Sgt. Howie resembles Pentheus in the sense that both men represent what appears to be the only source of logical thinking in their respective stories. In “The Bacchae,” all the women in the city have gone mad, and even Pentheus’ own grandfather provides little support for him. In “The Wicker Man,” the inhabitants of Summerisle have abandoned Christianity for pagan worship, and partake in activities that appear to be insane to Sgt. Howie. What’s worse is that the island’s inhabitants seem to mock Sgt. Howie’s murder investigation and show little respect for his authority as a police officer.
Both men also see the allure in worshipping these new gods, but fear that doing so would anger their own god (who they know for certain are real). Unfortunately, their devotion to their faith is what gets them killed in the end; because they were unable to accept things for the way they are. Rather than simply recognizing that Dionysus was truly a son of Zeus, he repeatedly denies the god’s birth story, which only further angers Dionysus. If Sgt. Howie had just allowed the people of Summerisle to perform their May Day rituals, then perhaps he may have been spared his fate (though, they did recruit him as a sacrifice, so that’s unlikely).
Pentheus and Sgt. Howie also dressed in costume to infiltrate the sacred practices of groups of people they did not understand. Pentheus “became” a woman and paraded himself through the city streets on route to spy on the women up in the mountain; Sgt. Howie incapacitates the innkeeper and takes on the role of Punch during the islanders’ march. Of course, the intrusion is not appreciated in either story, and the participants spend little time punishing them for it. Though, in both their cases, the men are said to have voluntarily met their own fate despite the fact that Pentheus was somewhat under Dionysus’ control and the islanders baited Sgt. Howie onto Summerisle with a fake murder case.
Finally, both Sgt. Howie and Pentheus are sexually inexperienced: Sgt. Howie is a 40-something year old virgin and Pentheus is still quite young. Though Euripides does not explain whether Pentheus is a virgin or not, his curiosity in the women’s activity on the mountain (and belief that it must be something sexual) suggests that Pentheus has had very little experience with the opposite sex. Much like the way Willow’s erotic dance (through a wall) distracted Sgt. Howie from his investigation, Pentheus’ overbearing expectations of catching a glimpse of the women in a massive orgy clouds his judgment and prevented him from realizing how dangerous his actions we becoming.
Why is Sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
First, Sgt. Howie is the perfect sacrifice because he is a virgin. He goes to the island to find out what happened to Rowan, but after he went to the island and everyone told him there was no Rowan he was persistent and that persistence led to curiousity. His persistence and curiousity led him to being the fool in the May Day festival. Therefore, he was the perfect sacrifice because he was a virgin and a fool.
Sgt. Howie is the perfect sacrifice in several ways. For example, Howie is lured to an island to investigate the case of a missing girl. Howie, a devout Christian and virgin, finds himself among Pagans. Howie is the perfect sacrifice in that he is a believer, a pure human, and is ultimately a martyr when he is sacrificed at the end of the film.
Why is Sgt. Howie the perfect sacrifice?
Sgt Howie is the perfect sacrifice for many reasons. He is looking for Rowan which is one. Also he is Apollonian on the island filled with Dionysian characters. He is also a very clean and pure christian who is also a virgin.
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