 Quick review PRAISE FOR THE GOLDEN VINE
"Sen has woven a plausable alternate history around the 'real' historical events, and breathed new life into characters who for the last two and a half thousand years or so have been nothing more than tantalising names on paper."
--Regie Rigby,
Silver Bullet Comic Books
|
History vs. alternate history The
Golden Vine is faithful to recorded history, but only up to a point.
The most compelling question posed by Alexander's life is "what if he
had succeeded in his campaign to conquer the world?" Scholars agree that
he could have. Toward the end of his life, Alexander was showing tendencies of
becoming an explorer, and his genius for administration is not fully
recognized by history.
Here is a sampling of some of the alterations that were made to set the
stage for The Golden Vine.
|
Recorded history
|
|
The Golden Vine
|
|
? date unknown
Hephaestion and Alexander become friends as boys (Hephaestion is presumed to have grown up in Macedon,
but little information exists about his background).
|
|
346 BCE
Hephaestion, who grew up in Athens as a servant, emigrates with his father to
their ancestral homeland in Macedon. Alexander rescues Hephaestion from the torments of Macedonian boys who ridicule
his
Athenian accent, and the two become lifelong friends.
|
|
338 BCE
Alexander and his father Philip quarrel; Alexander flees Macedon with his mother Olympias to the kingdom of Epirus,
indignant and fearing Philip's reprisal.
|
|
338 BCE
Alexander and Philip quarrel; Alexander and Olympias leave Macedon. Hephaestion accompanies them against the wishes of his father,
who is loyal to Philip.
Alexander, distraught and worried that he will be removed from his position as heir, goes to see the
oracle of Dodona in Epirus; Hephaestion accompanies him. The oracle,
which speaks through three priestesses, urges Alexander to follow the ancient teachings of the
"sorceress from Greece."
|
|
337 BCE
Alexander and his mother are called back to Macedon by Philip, who pardons them. Sources disagree about the exact reasons for Philip's clemency.
|
|
337 BCE
Alexander, Olympias, and Hephaestion are called back to Macedon and receive a full pardon. They learn that
Hephaestion's father has died during their absence, and Philip's pardon is issued out of pity for Hephaestion.
|
|
336 BCE
Alexander is thought to have gone to the Oracle of Delphi. The oracle's message is not known.
|
|
336 BCE
Alexander goes to the Oracle of Delphi; Hephaestion accompanies him. The oracle's message is cryptic, but seems to indicate that
Alexander must burn the capital of Persia (Persepolis) in order to achieve his aim of ruling the world, and warns against the treachery of his future heir.
|
|
336 BCE
King Philip is murdered at his daughter's wedding.
Alexander takes control immediately, and partly as a result of this, Alexander
and his mother Olympias are never fully cleared of suspicion.
|
|
336 BCE
King Philip is murdered; Alexander is not involved, but he suspects his mother Olympias.
Nevertheless, he wastes no time in taking power, and his great campaign
is set in motion.
|
|
331 BCE
Alexander visits the Oracle of Zeus-Amon in Siwah, in the Lybian desert. The oracle's prophecy is not known,
but most historians speculate that Alexander is told that he is of divine origins, which feeds the fires of his ambition
and contributes to his growing instability.
|
|
331 BCE
Alexander goes to the oracle of Zeus-Amon at Siwah with Hephaestion and some of his other close companions. Only Hephaestion
is allowed into the oracle's chamber. The oracle tells Alexander it is his sacred duty to take the throne of Persia and to become a "god of the world, the lord of the sky."
|
|
330 BCE
Alexander's forces defeat Darius III, Great King of Persia,
capture two of the four capitals of the Persian Empire, and storm into Persepolis. Alexander orders his troops to sack
the city and loot its wealth, and sets fire to the magnificent royal palace himself.
|
|
330 BCE
Alexander's forces overthrow Darius III,
capture two of the four capitals of the Persian Empire, and reach Persepolis. A young eunuch is sent out to surrender the city. Alexander accepts his
tribute, and orders his men not to destroy Persepolis...
|
|
324 BCE
Hephaestion dies. Alexander, driven nearly insane with grief, decides to push ahead with his campaign against the wishes of his troops, who
insist on returning to Macedon. |
|
324 BCE
Hephaestion is crowned Great King of Persia by Alexander, who returns to Macedon to plan out his campaign
to conquer the rest of Asia.
|
|
323 BCE
Alexander dies after a mysterious illness. His Indian campaign has been a failure and his forces are on the verge of mutiny.
|
|
323 BCE
Alexander writes to Hephaestion from India, telling him of his
successful conquest of the entire Indian subcontinent, and his plans
to invade China. News of territories unknown to the Greeks begins to
reach Alexander...
|
|
The films
Several films have been made about the life of Alexander the Great.
Sikander (India, 1943)
An Indian film directed by Sohrab Modi, "Sikander" focuses primarily on the inner motivations of
Alexander, his tempestuous family situation, and his invasion of India. The story, released
just four years before Indian independence, has a subtext of India's long struggle to free itself from foreign occupation.
Alexander the Great (USA, 1956)
A Hollywood classic from the latter days of great MGM epics, this film starring Sir Richard Burton wavers between
strict accuracy and surprising detours into apocrypha. The film is maligned by Alexander buffs because it
greatly compresses and alters historical facts for dramatic effect.
Alexander (USA, 2004)
The less said about Oliver Stone's interpretation, the better. A mish-mash of poor research and a weak story that does injustice to the visual aspects of the film that do work (Colin Farrell's wig nonwithstanding), and blighted by inexplicable dramatic choices (including incongruous accents and a sex scene that includes barking), "Alexander" manages to bore and offend at the same time. Widely considered to be one of the worst films ever made.
|