Was Nefertiri right to kill Memnet?

[jeremy88]

Okay, so I was just watching Cecil B. DeMil's The Ten Commandments the other day, and a question came up to mind during the scene where Nefertiri kills her servant maid Memnet.

SO, for those who don't know this story, here's a breif synopsis. Based on the Book of Exodus in the Bible, it tells the story of Moses who delieverd the Hebrew slaves of Egypt to freedom. Fearful that one day the slaves might be freed due to this "Deliverer" Pharoah orders that all Hebrew male infants be put to death. Escaping this horrific event, Moses is raised in Pharoah's palace as a Prince of Egypt. Now, the only two people that know of Moses' Hebrew heritage are Bithiah(Pharoah's sister/Moses' Foster mother) and Memnet(Servant Maid).

As the story progesses, Nefertiri(the Princess) and Moses are to be married. BUT angry that a Hebrew man is so close to becoming Pharoah, Memnet decides to tell Nefertiri about Moses' true heritage. This upsets Nefertiri so much that she strangles/shoves Memnet off the balcony.

Why Nefertiri was right to Kill!
Reason #1: The day Bithiah found Moses among the bullrushes, she made Memnet swear in oath to never say that Moses is of Hebrew blood"The day you break that oath shall be the last your eyes ever see"

Reason #2: Nefertiri and Moses are in love! The power of love conquers all! Even at the cost of killing your servant maid!

Why Nefertiri was wrong to kill!
Reason #1: Memnet was only trying to protect the Egyptian tradition of keeping the family of Royal Blood.

Reason #2: Even though Memnet was as mean as a Crocodile and cold as an iceberg *(HeeH Iceberg's in Egypt). Was death really necesesary to shut Memnet up? Guess Nefertiri never really liked her after all.

Another thing to take note on is:
When Memnet and Bithiah are speaking to each other, at the end of their conversation Bithiah says to Memnet: "Your tongue will dig your grave, Memnet" in other words, she better be careful with her choice of words. Which indeed eventually took her to death.

There are plenty of other questions and what if's that occur in this movie. In the end God's will must still be done, and though Memnet was killed, the truth speaks for itself.

If you haven't seen "The Ten Commandments" highly recommend a viewing. It's a really good film no matter what your beliefs are.

[Escapay]

Okay, so I was just watching Cecil B. <strike>DeMil</strike> DeMille's The Ten Commandments the other day, and a question came up to mind during the scene where <strike>Nefertiri</strike> Nefretiri kills her servant maid Memnet.

Better.

Anyway, while the decision definitely was not Nefretiri's (after all, no person has a right to kill another, Commandment or not), within the context of the story it makes sense for Nefretiri to have done it. Not saying it's right, just that it seems the logical course of action for the character.

The girl's been in love with Moses forever. She thinks about nothing but him, and how to make him hers. When she sees the affection that the Ethiopian Princess has for Moses, you can see the anger and jealousy in her eyes. She covers it up quickly with "And such a beautiful enemy", but everyone knows she's annoyed.

Later one when she's with Moses, she's basically flirting with Moses and saying that it doesn't matter what Egypt needs ("But I am Egypt!") when Moses says why he's building a city for Seti. Nefretiri is really just nothing but a selfish girl who wants the guy. She does not care at all for what is the good of Egypt, but only for the good of her heart.

In the next scene when she's playing Hounds & Jackals with Seti, she's continually enthusiastic for the prospect of Moses as Pharaoh, and when he even suggests that Ramses could be the successor, she angrily "cheats" at the game just to show her disapproval. And her whole scene with Ramses ("None of me, do you think that kiss is a promise of what you'll have? No, my pompous one. It's to let you know what you will not have. I could never love you") is basically her tearing into the guy because of the simple fact that he is *not* Moses. To her, he's the antithesis of Moses.

Her confrontation with Memnet comes as that final straw that broke the camel's back. Never mind that Memnet's the one that actually had dirt on Moses. The girl's been annoyed at the Ethiopian princess, Seti, and Ramses, the last thing she needs is her servant (a servant!) to say, "[Moses] is lower than the dust." As it would be easier for her to silence Memnet than to convince Seti, she kills her.

At the same time, you can also see just how devoted her love is to Moses ("You think I care whose son he is?!?"), but also how terrified she is of the thought that the secret could possibly be true. Moses points out that if she didn't believe in Memnet's lies, she wouldn't have killed her. After all, what's a servant's word to a Princess's? But the fact that she did reveals that she realized it was true, and in order to "keep" Moses, as well as his status, she would have to kill Memnet. It's like the old saying "Three people can keep a secret if two of them are dead". Of course, that's taking Bithia out of the equation entirely, since she pretty much has convinced herself for the past so many years that Moses rightfully is hers and not a Levite/Hebrew woman's. So Nefretiri likely would not be concerned about her.

On the flipside, we can say that she wasn't right to kill Memnet for the same reasons that she did kill her. It's a servant's word against more powerful figures, and the only evidence to support it was the patterned cloth. Nefretiri could have easily burned it and then claimed that Memnet had gotten old and delusional, simply because she favored Ramses over Moses.

In addition, with only Bithia and Memnet knowing the secret, the fact that Bithia is still willing to keep it would weaken any accusation by Memnet. And since Nefretiri loves Moses and would kill for him, she would have also sided with Bithia and kept the secret. And given Ramses' actions and attitudes towards Moses, Seti might not have believed him either if Memnet ever told him.

The whole thing boils down to impulse, really. Nefretiri, blinded by her love for Moses, made an impulsive decision to kill Memnet, and that ultimately set into motion everything that she wanted to prevent (Moses' heritage discovered, his banishment, the fall of Egypt, etc.). At the same time, Memnet could be seen as making an impulsive decision by telling Nefretiri alone and not among others who could easily see how her story makes sense (like Ramses, the temple priests, etc.). I mean, come on, she kept the secret for so many years that when she finally reveals it, it's in a one-on-one conversation with a lovesick girl whose already been tetchy about the subject for awhile now. You'd think she'd save that kind of secret for Seti's Jubilee instead... And Bithia's impulsive actions later (going to Goshen to herd the family out before Moses finds them) again helps set into motion everything that she wanted to prevent (Moses' heritage discovered and his banishment).

Of course, if they did prevent these things from happening, we wouldn't have a movie.

If you haven't seen "The Ten Commandments" highly recommend a viewing. It's a really good film no matter what your beliefs are.

Agreed. It's my favorite film (like, ever) for a reason.

albert

[carolinakid]

It's guys like you and discussions like these that make me love this board so much. Of course, she should have killed that cold bitch! Go, Nefretiri! I love that movie. The dialogue is SO over the top! Albert, you have SUCH a great memory! I love when Nefretiri throws the perfume on a dirty, shirtless Charlton Heston!

Jon

[Escapay]

It's guys like you and discussions like these that make me love this board so much.

The dialogue is SO over the top! Albert, you have SUCH a great memory!

Thanks. When you've seen The Ten Commandments as much as I have, you remember nearly everything they say.

Plus, with highly quotable lines like "Oh Moses, Moses, you stubborn, splendid, adorable fool!" and "All mine, like my dog or my horse or my falcon, only I will love you more...and trust you less", how can anyone NOT remember them?

albert

[jeremy88]

wow Escapay! That was a thorough explanation!

I guess the most logical reason is that she did it by impulse. Rather then was it right or wrong. And your so right that there wouldn't have been a movie if Moses heritage was kept secret heh. You really do know the Ten Commandments!

One part I don't get though is when Ramses changes his mind about freeing the slaves, why does he tell Nefretiri that he's going to bring back the sword with Moses' blood to mingle with hers? Is it because he thinks she still loves Moses so he might as well kill her or something? In that scene I love how Nefretiri just sits there with all composure knowing her life could end. "Before you stike, show me his blood."

One of my favorite quotes is when Ramses is trying to show the costly expenses Moses is causing by him building the city, and then Moses explains his part and drops the brick on the scale and says "The dead make none." Ooooh Ramses got owned lol.

[Escapay]

wow Escapay! That was a thorough explanation!

Thanks!

One part I don't get though is when Ramses changes his mind about freeing the slaves, why does he tell Nefretiri that he's going to bring back the sword with Moses' blood to mingle with hers? Is it because he thinks she still loves Moses so he might as well kill her or something? In that scene I love how Nefretiri just sits there with all composure knowing her life could end. "Before you stike, show me his blood."

It's because Rameses has known all along that Nefretiri would always love Moses, and that nothing he ever could have done as a Pharaoh or a husband could change that. He acknowledges this soon after Moses is imprisoned ("I know that when I hold you in my arms, it will be his face that you will see, not mine."), and makes no qualms about it because for him, it's a one-upmanship against Moses. Initially to him, it's not about whether or not Nefretiri loves him. It's about the fact that he's got what Moses wanted. He's got the woman that loves him, the position that needed him, and the people that respected him. And for awhile, he believed that that would be enough, that her love for Moses wouldn't be as strong as his pride.

So when Moses returns and Nefretiri gets all groupie again, he finally realizes that he can truly lose her, the kingdom, everything. And Nefretiri, impulsive woman that she is, manipulates everything in order to keep Rameses from freeing the slaves, thus keeping Moses from leaving Egypt. Her taunts to Rameses ("Does the world bow to an empty throne?" and "Do you hear laughter, Rameses?") gets what she wants: Moses stays in Egypt, along with the vain hope that perhaps he'll return to her, even if he ignored her before the royal court (during the presentations, she gets up to speak to him, but he walks on by) and later on spurns her on her barge ("You may be the lovely dust through which God works his purpose").

Nefretiri is a very powerful woman in the story, even if she comes off as a bit of a flake. She knows to feed Rameses' pride in order to keep Moses where she wants him, and in order to keep Rameses on edge. And she knows that Rameses needs her, because as queen she will bear his children. It's a bit inaccurate that they only have one child (after all, historically Rameses II had many children, but some historians dispute that Rameses II was Moses' foe), but then again, some dramatic licence was taken for the movie.

All this really comes to a head with the last plague. She hears Rameses' declaration that they'll kill all the firstborn of Israel, even though Moses did warn him that the last plague would be brought by him (though it takes an explanation for people to realize that the "role" would be reversed). And rather than protect her son, she goes to save Moses', believing that it would not only "redeem" her in his eyes, but that it would win him over. She's essentially proven to Moses and to Rameses that only one man ever occupied her heart. So when Rameses' son dies, it's such a crushing blow to both of them (to Nefretiri because she saved Moses' son, and to Rameses because it was his only son), that Nefretiri's love for Moses is truly gone, but in addition, so is any capacity to love at all.

For Rameses, it's all blatantly obvious to everyone but him, and it takes the death of his son and Nefretiri's cold attitude for him to finally realize it. He sets the Hebrews free, not just because he's finally had it with the plagues, but because he's finally free himself. He's free of Nefretiri's machinations, he's no longer prey to her wills...so he thinks.

Soon after the Hebrews leave, Rameses constantly prays to the Egyptian gods to revive his son. It's undisclosed how many days have passed, though given how quickly the chariots reach the Hebrews and the sea could show it's only a couple (remember, the Hebrews are a large group walking together, the chariots are a smaller group of soldiers racing to destroy them). But before the whole chariots, there's that short-but-vital scene where Nefretiri again taunts him, first about the god ("He cannot hear you, it's just a piece of stone with a bird's head on it") then about his position ("Egypt? You are nothing"), before finally attacking his pride ("Not the laughter of kings! But the laughter of slaves in the desert").

And this brings back the whole "Nefretiri still has power over him" idea. Rameses is by now royally pissed off. His kingdom's in shambles, his people cannot respect him, his queen wants nothing with him. So when Nefretiri does that whole "laughter" bit, he puts all his anger, all his blame on them. And their leader is Moses. And Nefretiri loved no one but Moses. If she's angry at them and taking it out on him (the laughter), he must destroy them. So, even if it seems like he's still got some semblance of power, he's doing it all because Nefretiri wants it done. But at the same time, he's doing it to finally rid himself of them all.

The whole "mingling" of Moses' and Nefretiri's blood is Rameses' way of basically saying, "When I kill Moses, you have nothing left, so you're dead anyway." And she embodies all that he did not want, because she loved Moses. So he plans on killing her to free himself, and to free her (again, going back to it all being what Nefretiri wants to be done). This explains her calm composure when Rameses returns, defeated. She's ready for death, she welcomes it.

And Rameses, of course, knows this. He pulls out his sword, ready to strike, when she again reminds him of Moses ("Before you strike, show me his blood on your sword"). To which he simply throws it on the ground and sits down. He won't kill her. He'll let her live the rest of her life knowing that somewhere, Moses is alive and happy, and that he does not love her. That's far worse than death. And she doesn't realize this. She thinks that he's still just a coward ("You couldn't even kill him.").

Rameses' final line, "His God...Is God" is a double-edged sword. He's not only acknowledged that the God of Israel totally kicked his ass, but he's also going against everything that he was brought up to believe (not that he did, as he remarked "You prophets and priests made the gods, that you may prey upon the fears of men"). One could say that he finally *found* God, but it comes at the expense of losing everything he was trying to preserve. His battle with Moses came to a close, and he lost everything in this world, but gained perhaps a lot more in the next. Thus, he knows that he can't kill Nefretiri. Not only to make her live her life alone and unloved, but because he's been enlightened himself.

The ambiguity of Rameses' last scene always fascinated me as a kid. The guy basically admits defeat on all fronts, and yet, he seems to be a better man for it. True, he lost his son, lost his people's respect, lost his wife's...tolerance. But he discovered something far greater, and something which greatly confuses him. What does he do now? How will he continue ruling Egypt? Instead, the story ends abruptly for him, because as fascinating as that journey could be, it's not one we're meant to see, but to only speculate. Historically, this likely didn't happen (the Pharaoh having a spiteful wife who loved Moses, then "finding God" when he sees the great powers that destroy his army, etc.), but within the context of the film, leads to a lot of possibilities that could have been explored.

One of my favorite quotes is when Ramses is trying to show the costly expenses Moses is causing by him building the city, and then Moses explains his part and drops the brick on the scale and says "The dead make none." Ooooh Ramses got owned lol.

Aw, I loved that line. "The city is built of brick, Pharaoh. The strong make many, the starving make few...the dead make none." It's pragmatism at its best.

albert

[jeremy88]

Another outstanding explanation! Knowing what that scene means now makes more powerful/meaningful! Pretty sad how for Nefretiri, living life alone was more painful then death. But heck, shes still the Queen of Egypt right? I guess being a Queen is nothing when you have no one to love or be loved. I never thought about that before but what does Rameses do with Egypt after all this drama? As the guy in the tootsie pop commerical says "The world may never know."

I'm going to save your entire explanation so next time I watch this with my Mom and Sister, I'm going to explain what that scene to them!

Thanks a bunch Albert!

-Jeremy