Ludwig van Beethoven was long praised as a master composer and a brilliant musician, completely deaf at the end of his life, but still capable of musical feats superior to those who came before him, and those who came after. Very few, if any, would question the genius of Beethoven's music. However, there is room for discussion about the portrayal of Beethoven's genius in Bernard Rose's Immortal Beloved (1994). The writer/director falls into the trap of the mythical archetype advertised by the mass media, focusing and exalting the traits of the icon of the socially popular genius without exploring the profile of the true genius, in an attempt to appease the social demand for something that the public can recognize , understand and, conceivably, identify with. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay There are many typical traits that make up the popular perception of genius. He is a mentally unbalanced person and his temper becomes easily aroused, often due to mental illness and/or substance abuse. He is alone and isolated, considered a social outcast by the local community or of his own free will, and has problematic personal relationships. The person is born gifted with superhuman talents and a natural panache for the selected field, which essentially requires no training. He also has a seemingly ethereal intuition that seems to transcend personal experience. These last two notions of genius date back to ancient Greece, when the Muses were thought to instill creativity in humans. It was in this way that the superhuman and sublime characterization of genius was realized (Daitch and Hoddeson 5). This conception was only further cultivated in popular iconography by writers such as Mary Shelly and Edgar Allen Poe, and with mainstream films such as Good Will Hunting. Geniuses are characterized as inexperienced, unprivileged, non-conforming, outrageous, reclusive, and emotionally unstable people, possessed by their creative powers rather than gifted with them. Their genius becomes a burden rather than a gift, and they are ultimately consumed and damned by the powers they brood upon. Beethoven certainly embodies many of these qualities. His increasing deafness was the cause of increasing isolation; not only did it force him into a life of recluse, towards which he was tremendously touchy and ferocious, but it also caused him great attacks of depression. In a letter to a friend, Beethoven wrote, “I must confess that I lead a miserable life…as long as I live…I will be God's most miserable creature…” (Jones 58). As for relationships, his were certainly troubled. Beethoven was known to date many women, although he had the nasty knack of getting involved with women who were firmly attached to another man or who showed little or no feelings for him. Alexander Thayer, speaking about the structure of Beethoven's relationships, said: "An all-absorbing but temporary passion, lasting until its object is married to a more favored lover, is forgotten in another destined to end the same way, until, in the end, one loses all faith in the possibility of a permanent and constant attachment to one person" (Solomon 207). Beethoven ended his life without ever marrying. Seeing how Beethoven's traits mentioned above fit the mold perfectly of the mythical genius, one might have doubts about what exactly Bernard Rose inadequately represented in The Immortal Beloved However, rather than a sin of commission, his was a sin of omission. Although the information presented is historically accurate , present only half the storydescribed satisfy the popular stereotype of the genius, but what is not addressed is the difference between the mythical archetype and the profile of the true genius, the one who lives, works and breathes in the real world. The mythical genius archetype actually has merit. It presents the audience with a “hero,” someone we can identify with or be inspired by. By classifying the things that mystify us, we are able to understand them better and therefore accept them. However, the archetype alone, without the other side of the story, is only a half-truth and is not enough to represent Beethoven's true genius. The characteristics presented in Immortal Beloved are not necessarily the only defining characteristics of either genius nor were they necessarily the most evident characteristics in his life. The profile of true genius contains many additional traits, more pragmatic and less divine traits. Intelligence, passion, confidence, focus and perseverance are just some of them. If on the one hand Beethoven satisfies the popular archetype, on the other he also, and above all, satisfies the profile of true genius. Beethoven, for example, was neither a superhuman talent, nor did he become what he was without any kind of training or study. His father Johann van Beethoven, a court tenor, was eager for the success of recent child prodigy Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and was determined to make another out of Beethoven. He mercilessly guided six-year-old Ludwig, making him stand for hours in front of the harpsichord, practicing to the point of tears. Often, when his father came home from the winery late at night, he would drag Ludwig out of bed and keep him at the piano until morning (Burk 13, 14). As Benjamin Franklin said, “Genius without education is like silver in the mine” (Franklin sec 8). Like anything else of great value, genius requires hard work and diligence, which Beethoven certainly exemplified. Beethoven's intelligence, although the IQ test was introduced long after his time, can be estimated based on school rankings, anecdotes, written works, and other similar things. from his first 26 years of life. After a correction to counteract regression towards the mean, his IQ amounts to 165 on the Stanford-Binet scale (Cox sec 7). The minimum IQ on this test to be considered genius is 142, ranking Beethoven 23 points above "genius". As for passion, it is evident in his many loves that his emotions were strong and fiery. In a quote from his letter to his unknown immortal beloved, Beethoven writes: "Ah, wherever I am, there you are too... What a life!!! So!!! Without you... I can live entirely only with you ". or not at all... love me, today, yesterday, what a tearful longing for you, my life, all mine, oh keep loving me, never misjudge the most faithful heart of your beloved your always mine always ours" (Howitt 99 , 100).If passion does not motivate such claims, one can only wonder what else could. Of perseverance in genius, Henry Austin wrote: “Genius, that power which dazzles mortal eyes / Oft is nothing else what perseverance in disguise" (Page 96 sec 1). When Beethoven was 28, he began to go deaf. In a letter to his two brothers, Beethoven wrote: "I could not bring myself to say to the people: 'Speak, shout, because I'm deaf.' Alas, how could I speak of the weakening of a sense which in me should be more perfectly developed than in others... I was on the verge of ending my life - The only thing holding me back was my life. art" (Davies 45). In this way he demonstrated perseverance: to possess that sense which should have been the most perfect in him of all men, and yet to march bravely forward, if only for the sake of the music he had yet to write. Indeed, engaging in his life and his.