Enlightened Entertainment Finding Life Lessons in Movies & Television: 'Hamilton'
Dr. Sara B. Frawley
Well, you knew this was coming. Whether you love or hate musicals, whether you love or hate this musical, everyone is talking about it. Hamilton, a rap-opera of its own kind, became one of the most popular Broadway plays ever and now thanks to Disney+, everyone can watch the original cast in their brilliance.
Don't "Talk less, smile more." Just don’t.
"Don’t let them know what you are against or what you are for" is one of the first bits of advice Aaron Burr gives to Alexander Hamilton. But Burr’s stance, or lack of, led to his loss in the presidential election. While avoiding conflict is the easy way to get through life, it is also limiting. It is hiding yourself from the world. What did our forefathers’ fight for except for our rights to stand up for what we believe in, to have a voice and a say? For our right to be and grow into whatever we want. The true “American Dream”.
We fought to not be dominated by a king.
Just like the Revolutionary War, peaceful protests that are being condemned and restricted have turned violent. Our right to peaceful assembly was established by the great men (and women) who freed us from a monarchy and now that is being threatened. Whether you do or do not believe in the things that are currently being protested, you should be outraged by how the protesters are being tear-gassed, pepper-sprayed, arrested, and even beaten.
Fear the person that is never satisfied.
Hamilton didn’t find satisfaction in his career, his relationships, or his life until later in life. Finding satisfaction in your own accomplishments and life doesn't mean that you won't strive for more. Satisfaction isn't complacency. It is gratitude. It just means that you are grateful for what you have. Finding thankfulness for your life is the way to finding happiness.
A play about our forefathers doesn't just have to be a cast of all white men.
One of the things that makes Hamilton so great is that it is the example and epitome of how a play doesn’t have to be all white or all male. The amazing integration of this musical suspends our belief that our forefathers, even Thomas Jefferson, were white. As we move into a new time of equality, it is important for other plays, and for that matter all forms of entertainment, to learn from the success of this world-changing masterpiece.