Ambition is a strange, and mysterious concept, widely believed to be a perfect quality, something that can only aid in achieving our goals and dreams. And in a way, this is true. Ambition is the driving force to achieve your goals, and this is constantly proven over and over everyday from famous athletes successes to the little actions that we all take. However, an excess of ambition can be dangerous, and even sometimes fatal. Across 400 years, the ideas and perceptions on ambition have been developed and challenged, often expressed through text and film. Although the english language may have changed over these 4 centuries, the same ideas and warnings emerge time and time again. Gattaca, Cars, Macbeth and Ozymandias, all share the theme of ambition, although each presents it in a slightly different way.
In the film Gattaca, the idea of ambition is presented as a positive characteristic, something that drives all humans when there are challenges to be overcome. Vincent is born with no genetic enhancements and a burning desire to become an astronaut, a very impossible goal in his situation. But along with his genetic disability, he gains what many genetically perfect humans lack – ambition. Vincent’s vaulting ambition is so strong that he does achieve his goal, despite all who try to stop him. This idea of ambition is enforced by symbolism, choosing waves that try to restrain and hold back Vincent. When swimming, Vincent says a very powerful line: “I never saved anything for the swim back.” This carries all of Vincent’s ambition in the one line, saying that he has escaped the fear of failure, and will stop at nothing to achieve his goals and prove the dystopian society wrong. The film shows us the incredible power of ambition to reach our goals and overcome impossible challenges.
Another aspect of the consequences of ambition in introduced to us in the 2006 movie Cars. The movie describes the life of Doc Hudson, the greatest racer of his time, until he was cast out by the racing world after his near fatal crash. He realised that he actually had nothing, and his achievements meant nothing. When McQueen discovered Doc’s piston cups, Doc said “All I see is a bunch of empty cups.” Something that he had fought so hard to earn actually held no real value, and the racing world that he was in did not care for him. His ambition had led him to unwanted places, and blinded him to the true pleasures that life had: friends and family. The theme of ambition in Cars does agree with Gattaca in saying ambition will achieve your goals, but Cars adds to this by telling us that our ambition may not always lead us to where we really want to be, and that we must be sure that we are on the path to happiness rather than success.
Macbeth, the 1606 play by Shakespeare, introduces the idea of morality being affected by ambition. Macbeth had huge ambitions to become king, which was not an impossibility as he was of very high ranking. However, his ambition was too strong, and he believed he had to take action. The only thing stopping him from committing atrocious crimes was his morality, but he willingly allowed this to fall in order for his ambition to crown him king. His ambition became very dangerous, as it made Macbeth do anything it took to become king, and led to the murder of many close friends. He says “Upon my head they lay a fruitless crown.” Similar to Doc, he realised that becoming king meant nothing to him, and that he now had nothing of value, hence the crown being ‘fruitless’. The symbol of the crown is similar to the Piston Cup, as they are both worthless tools of meaningless achievements. There is a contrast between the message here and the message of Gattaca, as Macbeth does not have a positive outcome as the result of his ambition.
Ozymandias message about ambition is different to the other texts, as it talks about time’s effect on ambition and legacy. Ozymandias was the ‘king of kings’, the greatest human with the most power, as a result of his ambitions. His legacy is unmatched in size, creating monumental statues to last till the end of time. However, this statue now lies in lone and level sands as a colossal wreck. Time had destroyed Ozymandias’ legacy until all that existed was a shadow of his former glory. On the pedestal it read: “Look on my works, ye Mighty and despair!” He means for us to be in despair because of his power, but the line is ironic, as it is actually telling us to be in despair because of the message that it gives. No matter how great your success may be, it will eventually fade away and turn to dust. We are a tiny speck, on a vast timeline. In a way this message is humbling, as reminds us that we are not as important as we make ourselves, and that our legacy should not be the goal of life, rather, we should enjoy the simple pleasures as they come along, and be gracious of this gift that has been given to us.
All 4 texts contribute to defining the concept of ambition, but Ozymandias’ message about time and legacy creates a question: If nothing will withstand the passage of time, is it really worth striving for personal greatness with our ambition, at the cost of losing our morality?