"Chariots of Fire"

By Victoria Kim on May 20, 2012

“Chariots of Fire” directed by Hugh Hudson won 4 Academy Awards including Best Picture in 1981. Although it’s been over 20 years since Warner Brothers produced the motion film, but it has remained an inspirational classic through time.

“Chariots of Fire” tells the story of two athletes, Harold Abrahams from England and Eric Liddell from Scotland, and their differing perspectives toward the Olympic games. Abrahams is a Jew, a freshman enrolled in Cambridge University, England. He competes in races to prove himself as an Englishman, attending an English university and soon courting an English girl. However, he can’t shake off his identity as a Jew and runs to prove his identity and worth. The running, as his fellow friend states in the movie, “is a matter of life and death.” The training for the games consumes his life. In the end, he wins in the 100-meter race in the 1924 Olympic games, but I wonder, what happens after? He has won, he’s proven his point, and now what?

Eric Liddell takes a different approach in running the race. Originally he had plans to go to China on religious missions, but first he competes in the Olympics. As he states in the film, “I believe God has made me for a purpose…but He also made me fast…and when I run I feel His pleasure.” What a different view of the task at hand! With his unique style of running, with his head thrown back and mouth wide open, Eric runs for another sake than the gold.

Liddell stands by his convictions and holds firm to his values – despite the pressure from his country and the Olympic committee, he refused to run the 100-meter dash on Sunday because he wanted to honor the Sabbath. Don’t worry, that was made up when he broke the world record in the 400-meter race a few days later. After the Olympics, Liddell then embarked to China as a missionary.

Liddell’s view toward the Olympics challenged me to reconsider my view towards life as well. Now that the academic year is ending for most seniors, what happens now? How do you view your college experiences? Were they accomplishments to define your identity, like Abrahams, or were they parts of an assignment in this journey called life, like Liddell?

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