Captain Jack Sparrow: A Pop Culture Icon - Essay Example

?ENG106N5 02/09 Captain Jack Sparrow: A Pop Culture Icon From J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan, to Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, to Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean franchises, it has been there to influence and to inspire the audience’s notions of pirates. In the book, “The Many Headed Hydra: Sailors, Commoners and the Hidden History of the Hidden Atlantic”, the authors Linebaugh and Rediker have outlined the motives of the seventeenth and eighteenth century pirates, particularly the political, social and ideological standpoints. With this book at hand, this paper attempts to compare the fictitious and the real pirates that haunted the seas of the Old World. The pop culture representation of pirates as shown in the movies and books can be accurate, but not as that in the book by Linebaugh and Rediker. The pop culture representations are simplified versions of the “real” pirates, maybe to become marketable to the audience, who are prone to be attracted by the romance that is behind piracy. Captain Jack Sparrow is the son of Captain Edward Teague, a pirate, born off the coast of India. As a boy, he embarked on many adventures; and as a young man, he was employed on the East India Trading Company where he was given a boat to commander, The Wicked Wench. But it was in this job that he got the reputation as a pirate as he freed his employer’s cargo of slaves as a captain of the ship. His employer burned the Wicked Wench. Jack Sparrow failed to save it, and sold his soul to the legendary Davy Jones in order to “resurrect” his ship. Davy Jones did, and Jack Sparrow renamed it The Black Pearl, and he lived up to his new reputation: a pirate (Trimble, 2003). As a pirate, he was known to patrol around the seas of the Caribbean, where he was given the title of The Pirate Lord. Then he lost Black Pearl again, this time to his crew because of a mutiny. This was led by his first mate, Hector Barbossa. With the help of Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, he got back his ship again, and defeated him along with his crew. The characterization of Captain Jack Sparrow was based on that of a rock star and nomads, as said by Johnny Depp in the audio commentary of the DVD. He is somehow morally ambiguous, but the audience can see that he is a good pirate, even an ethical one. However, his motives are often masked and the audience may or may not figure out what he is doing, and it is up to the audience if he is a good or a bad man. However, he is a very witty man, as he escapes sticky situations by waiting for the “opportune moment” and by manipulating the feelings of the people he transacts businesses with. He is also a pacifist, preferring to negotiate rather than fight with fellow men. He is also a very good speaker and his words have that certain charm to make people believe what he is saying, even if he manipulates the truth in order to further his interests. This information ties to Linebuagh and Rediker’s pirates as they are similar in nature. They are con artists at best and they try to be pacifists. He is also characterized as a man of poor personal hygiene and his breath is often compared to a “donkey’s ass” (he once knocked Will Turner by just huffing at him). He is also self-proclaimed as a man who has a “tremendous intuitive sense of the female creature”; the truth is far that, as his female relations usually have bitter memories of him (Trimble, 2003). This is apparently true as represented in Braithwaite’s quote in Linebaugh and Rediker’s book. Most pop culture representations of pirates were more or less variations of Jack Sparrow’s appearance. They have often rogue personalities that are also adventurous, as well as unrefined. They are mean-spirited and greedy, often wearing a bandanna or a feathered hat. They will sport missing teeth, suggesting scurvy, and they will be mostly malnourished. Take Captain Hook and his posse for instance, as represented in the Walt Disney animated feature. Jack Sparrow is all of that, and more. Jack Sparrow is a wise and intelligent pirate. He uses everything as a tool. He did not care for the colonial authority, unless he was directly threatened by their presence. This must be because he knew he can get away from any authority. He mostly cares for his image as he is a captain, but he also cares for his freedom. Threats to freedom are the major motivations why he has done the things he did. First, he freed the slaves. Then he became a pirate – who was practically a servant of no one but himself. Then, in the movie, he used Elizabeth Swann as a hostage to let him keep his freedom, when the navy cornered him. As the colonial forces indicate suppression of freedom, it was understandable why he does not really care for it. He only respects it if he has something beneficial to gain from respecting it. Although he clearly identifies himself as a pirate, and that makes him have a role in society. His insistence that he be called a Captain is an evidence of that. And as a pirate, his role is to rob ships of treasure. Jack Sparrow did all of that, but his characterization showed that he was more than a robber. He was actually a man who cares for his subordinates, like Boot Strap Bill. There is a conflict here, in his character: even if he liked to inflict chaos on the seas, he is also a caring leader. And yes, he is definitely part of the social structure of pirates, him being their captain and all. However, even if he is a part of the society, Jack Sparrow and company do not really care which side they are on, as long as they do what they want and get the bounty; they are the masters of their own ships, figuratively and literally. They only care for the bounty. That’s what makes the pirates a bit of a romantic icons: they are masters of their own fate, and they are actually free-spirits. Yes, they sometimes act against the social order (another hallmark of being a romantic – being an activist), as their behavior can mean that they are opposing the symbolisms that are presented by the government at the time. It has to be noted that Blackbeard sold his stolen goods at a lower price compared to the legitimate British imports and people loved that. In short, Blackbeard, as a pirate was helping the people by providing cheaper goods, but at the same time, he gets rich too (Kirkpatrick, National Geographic.com). The pirates live on a code. However, it is not clear if they follow the code down to its last letters. If they do, then they are very honorable. They are mostly loyal to their captains and captains take care of that loyalty, lest their crew conduct a mutiny. As Captain Jack Sparrow is characterized, the fictitious pirate is highly subjective: they are morally ambiguous, and will only act on something that will be of benefit to them. There is no right or wrong for them. Pirates, especially captains, have a strong sense of individuality. They even have their own nicknames so that they won’t be easily forgotten. Their sense of individuality even spans across the globe as they try to maintain their identity throughout the seven seas (it is interesting to note that the Commodore in Pirates of the Caribbean knew that Jack Sparrow was in India with the East India Trading Company). Lastly, the pirates are of class conscious and at some point, justice seeking. See, they know which ones who are rich and who are not. They target the rich people to be their victims so that they can loot them. These manner of looting the rich can be also a justice seeking behavior because, well, it may seem that they do avenge the poor by letting the rich experience hardships the poor experience. It may be a “Robin Hood” kind of act for the poor, by failing to recognize the power that the rich displays for society. As Jack Sparrow is an icon, it is good to compare him another icon, but non-fictitious. Blackbeard is a legendary pirate, as far as legends go. Like Jack Sparrow, he patrolled the Atlantic and the Caribbean. He and his crew razed and pillaged merchant ships around dawn or dusk, when ships are least seen. Usually, the victims surrendered without a fight, but when they do, the pirates attack them with pistols and such. He once cut a finger of his victim because that victim refused to give him her diamond ring. That was how he went with his victims. He was revered and feared at the same time, as he became a sort-of hero in North Carolina by selling his stolen goods cheaper than the goods that were imported from England. He was pro-poor in a way, and was only a threat to the rich. Besides, like the terrorists today, he was made by those rich forces. He was a privateer – private army of those times, being paid by the queen to ransack other nations’ ships (Kirkpatrick, National Geographic.com). Pirates, especially those who were former privateers, are creations of the government. With that information, we can say that the popular depiction of pirates in pop culture can be accurate. Pirates are virtually survivors; they will do everything to survive, and that can mean that they do not have strong morals or ethics at all (as you only think of your life). They are shunned by society because of the things they are expected to do. They do not feel appreciated. However, they do society good too, in a way, because they offer business competition at least. Lastly, they have their own social structures, which are important when a group of people are trying to construct a progressive society. Pirates that have had a successful social structure in their group are healthy, productive individuals with leadership skills. They can also be creative and sensitive (especially to their crew). However, their roles in “normal” society are tinged, just because they are “pirates”. References: Kirkpatrick, Jennifer. Blackbeard: Pirate Terror at Sea. National Geographic. N.d. Web. January 30, 2012. Trimble, Irene. Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (Junior Novelization). 2003. New York: Disney Publishers Worldwide. Print. Verbinski, Gore. Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl. Walt Disney, 2003. Film. . Read More