In Spartacus, director Stanley Kubrick and musical director Alex North use sound, including music, sound effects and dialogue, in the historical drama Spartacus to emphasize the types of romance the characters offer. Gladiator and slave revolt leader Spartacus (Kirk Douglas) and slave Varinia (Jean Simmons) live and love beyond their borders to produce a rich relationship that is synonymous with the strength of Spartacus' legacy. The jealous and reclusive Crassus (Laurence Olivier) attempts to stifle Spartacus' influence as leader of the Third Servile War and exemplary lover by killing the gladiator and purchasing Varinia as his wife. Roman general successfully ends the Third Servile War of the 1st century BC in Rome; however, he has a boring love life and the legend of Spartacus will continually haunt him. Through two sequences that begin with “Spartacus Love Theme” and “Oysters and Snails” respectively, North uses irony to contrast the love of a Thracian slave with that of a wealthy Roman; the film's high-pitched music reveals that those who are monetarily wealthy and influential may lack some basic pleasures in life. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay North's arrangements poke fun at a wealthy slave owner's quest for something a slave owns and highlight the irony in the prevailing relationship between Varinia and Spartacus. Varinia and Spartacus share a bond that North makes audible through “Spartacus Love Theme.” The melody presents the audience with a warm feeling of home and provides a sense of peace that is synonymous with the relationship between the lovers, especially during their bondage. “Spartacus Love Theme,” allowing the audience to intimately see the relationship between Varinia and Spartacus, suggests a defiance of any obstacle that attempts to come between their relationship. In contrast to the specific aura of Varinia and Spartacus' interactions promoted by "Spartacus Love Theme", North composes a melody that states Crassus' sexual intentions with Varinia "Oysters and Snails". The tune itself has a flirty vibe that often uses the sound you would imagine to accompany someone waving a wand to complete a magical act. The off-beat chords, mixed with the soft melody of the song, give the song a chilling effect. The next song in the Varinia and Crassus sequence, "Varinia in Crassus's House", exposes Crassus' desperate attempt to replace Spartacus and mocks his courtship. The soothing melody of “Spartacus Love Theme” highlights an emotional vulnerability available exclusively to viewers. The "Spartacus Love Theme" starts playing seconds before he sees Varinia in the kitchen waiting for breakfast. The diegetic sound gives the audience a subconscious vision that the characters cannot see or hear, but it suggests to the audience the feeling of anticipation of Spartacus. It's obvious he's thinking about her for the audience, because we hear their song. But to the guards, Spartacus must appear casual to mask his true feelings. As reiterated in later instances, such barriers that have the potential to affect their song (their relationship), like Crassus, become miniscule. Spartacus and Varinia know that the guards would not allow such intimate communication, if any at all. However, the lovers look at each other subtly and eventually talk to each other. In this sense, the love song also carries with it an aura of defiance. Instead of making a sudden pause in place of additional sound, the song fluidly surrounds the few words shared between Variniaand Spartacus as if they were lyrics. Spartacus rebelliously whispers to Varinia with concern, ignoring the guards stationed with whips and ready to attack anyone who disobeys. The fluidity of the melody surrounding this instance suggests encouragement for rebellion. The song foreshadows the beginning of a lasting partnership and expresses the indestructible boomerang effect of the love between Varinia and Spartacus. After the breakfast scene, snippets of "Training, Part II" during Spartacus' training abruptly interrupt the love song. The rushed and harsh sound of “Training, Part II” compared to the comforting sound of “Spartacus Love Theme” suggests that the lovers serve as stagnant symbols of peace for each other. Immediately after the training scene, the gladiators return to the kitchen for dinner and the love song begins again. Although memories of their unfortunate enslavement constantly permeate their lives, Varinia and Spartacus find happiness in each other. The growing familiarity of “Spartacus Love Theme” that North consciously constructs foreshadows feelings for the audience that may not be so obvious for Spartacus and Varinia. The sound of gladiator trainer Marcellus (Charles McGraw) kicking a slave, accompanied by the addition of darker chords to the love theme, gradually interrupts the soaring melody. North lowered the high-pitched melody into a somber mood, but only for a few seconds before the familiar melody rang out twice as loudly, almost counteracting the guard's entrance and empowering the lovers. Therefore, Marcellus, who repeatedly tries to prevent Spartacus and Varinia from acquiring a romantic relationship, is only a sharp distraction. The smooth transition from the love song to the lower notes over Marcello's cameo entrance suggests an underlying lyric. It seems like the darker melody has always been there, but harder to hear under the flowery tone of “Spartacus Love Theme.” The song presents the love between Spartacus and Varinia as more than just an escape. The lovers are aware of their slavery, but their love is an additional aspect that enhances their admittedly submissive life. The interruption reminds the audience of Varinia and Spartacus' slavery while letting us know that Marcellus, or a greater barrier like slavery, cannot stop Varinia and Spartacus' love. While some darker notes have found their way into the arrangement, the uplifting tone of the song prevails – their love will thrive through whatever endeavors may come their way. This sentiment reappears during later scenes when Crassus presents himself as a barrier between Spartacus and Varinia, a sequence introduced by the persistent melody "Oysters and Snails". The first time the audience hears the song is during Crassus' meeting with Antoninus, a scene that implicitly states Crassus' sexual desires for both females and males. This theme of intense sexual desire continues during the scene in which Crassus attempts to seduce Varinia with Roman life, the only other scene in which North plays "Oysters and Snails". “Oysters and Snails” begins to creep almost silently beneath the scene as Crassus watches Varinia from the entrance to the room. In parallel with the volume of the song, Crassus lowers his true intentions to seem more genuine to Varinia. However, Crassus' gaze indicates lust, as confirmed by the earlier use of the melody. The first dialogue of the scene is Crassus' polite request that Varinia remove the shawl that covers the upper half of her body; he wants to see more of her skin. He continues to talk about the material objects he provided Varinia and how she "of all people should respect the labor of slaves" who were worked at the expense of suchobjects. At this moment, the sound of the magic wand emphasizes how Crassus sees himself as a fairy godfather who raised Varinia from the depths of slavery and into a “rich” Roman house as his queen. He expects to be repaid by Varinia's love and reciprocated lust. This disguise painted by Crassus does not fool Varinia. The organically sincere “Spartacus Love Theme” illustrates the minimalist relationship between Varinia and Spartacus. While “Oysters and Snails,” a haunting tune complete with magical whooshes, addresses the additional layers of luck Crassus puts on to please Varinia. During the breakfast scene during Varinia's enslavement, the guards limited her speech to a minimum. However, she and her lover communicated quickly through various methods: eye contact, hand-holding, and whispers. During the scene at Crassus' house, he can talk as much as he wants. However, this fact does not favor a less hostile environment. Crassus' chatter about material objects does not elicit more than two words from Varinia. Varinia's betrothal to Spartacus required no luxury items and actually thrived in some of the most dehumanizing circumstances. On the other hand, Varinia's betrothal to Crassus goes nowhere, even with all the wealth that Spartacus did not possess as a slave. The second arrangement that North introduces into the sequence has the melody of a love song, in striking contrast to the content of the dialogue. The sympathetic tune satirizes Crassus' attempt to seduce Varinia with threats and wealth. The high-pitched violin of "Varinia in Crassus's House" mocks Crassus as he forcefully offers Varinia food but claims not to be demanding. Crassus is under the impression that Varinia has developed feelings for him and his money or is pretending that they are having an affair in the hope that she will follow his example. Varinia finally bursts her bubble of self-entitlement: “Why am I here?” The song ridicules Crassus' attempt to reunite a family when he does not refer to Varinia's son as a being, but rather "it". He assumes that Varinia will, like him, have a servant to nurse the child, which Varinia protests. The explicitly sarcastic and sympathetic tone of "Varinia in the House of Crassus" is particularly applicable when Crassus threatens the life of Varinia's son for his love. This twisted and desperate request for affection complements the main theme of the song: loneliness. The melody highlights that the pitiful Crassus cannot even win the girl after wooing her with jewels and beautiful clothes, feeding her or taking away everything she loves. The song virtuously expresses the sense of desire that both Crassus and Varinia possess; Crassus desires love and affection, and Varinia desires Spartacus. The pattern of "Varinia in Crassus's House", following the short arrangement that mocks Crassus, inserts some notes from "Spartacus Love Theme" and is surrounded by darker notes that drown out its familiar and flowing atmosphere. Crassus desperately tries to ruin the legend of Spartacus both in the Italian nation as a symbol of revolution for the slaves, and in Varinia's heart as her one true love. The piercing notes reminiscent of "Spartacus Love Theme" seem to be the most noticeable as Crassus states that "one should not weep forever". This juxtaposition brings Varinia's thoughts to the forefront, as well as Crassus' misunderstanding. Crassus assumes that Varinia would be unable to speak of her late lover, but gallantly shares his memories of Spartacus to the rising sound of horns. The horns highlight the legend of the brave and courageous Spartacus, thus adding an oratorical image to his memories. Sharp and sympathetic notes enter the arrangement while the jealousy of:.