Deeper into the 300

The History Behind the Graphic Novel and the Movie

By Dorothea Cantero
April 1, 2007

To read or watch the story of the 300 Spartans and the Battle of Thermopylae is to take a step back in time to a different age. Some would think that the story of King Leonidas and his men would be straight out of the mythologies along with the Hydra and the Gorgon Sisters. They would be wrong. The battle at Thermopylae was history and an event that changed the course of the Greek world. The story tells us how these men died, but how did they live?

Frank Miller's 300 gives us a wonderful story to go with the history. Many of the points made in the movie are taken straight from the histories but shown in such a wonderfully dramatic fashion that you are forced to think about it. Was this really the harsh reality that was Sparta? What of Xerxes' army? Could his archers really "blot out the sun"? What of Spartan women; how did they live?

In 1998, Frank Miller gave us 300. Dark and very well paced, it takes us through the various steps that took King Leonidas to his glory. Dilios spins the stories, step by step; some are good, some are not, but his is the voice in your head as you read. Spartans are barely dressed, which is historically correct, and reminds us of the time period 480 B.C.. Miller shows the hardships and the comradery, the tradition and the conflict with equal verve. While the Spartans are dark and brooding, those who stood against them are darker. The Ephors are boiled and hideous, though in reality they were only corrupt. The Immortals were men, not creatures, that were so numerous that when on would fall, another would replace it. However, the Persian Army and the Immortals look flimsy with their wooden shields against the bronze of the Spartan shields. It was a wonderfully spun story of Honor, Duty, Glory, Combat, and Victory.

While the graphic novel 300 gave us a good story, the film is, in a word ... more. The story itself was expanded but didn't lose any of it's depth. At times it is better than the source material. One storyline follows Leonidas and all that he goes through; the other follows Queen Gorgo and her fight to get reenforcements for her husband. Leonidas feels that he must go and fight, though he already knows that it will most likely end in his death. He goes without support by the council or the Ephors but with love from his wife and his men. Three hundred of his best soldiers, all who have born sons — this tells you that he is preparing to not return.

In the comic, Queen Gorgo has but four lines. In the movie we see much stronger character development and even more dramatic battles. "Come back with your shield ... or on it" is an old saying from mother to son or wife to husband as they prepare to go into battle. It was only the beginning: she must send her husband to war and then face the war at home, alone. Played by Lena Headey, Queen Gorgo is strong, independent, and willing to do anything to save her husband and Sparta. Theron, a councilman, is against her and takes advantage of her position .... He gets what is due to him.

The vile and vicious enemies are taken to an extreme that you cheer their demise, only to learn that it doesn't come. Yes, Leonidas made Xerxes suffer great losses and humiliated him, but what was the loss of 30,000 to an army of nearly 400,000? In the real ending, Xerxes defeats Leonidas and continues his march towards Athens with Leonidas' head on a pike. The Ephors are in power of Sparta until nearly one hundred years later. The Persians were eventually defeated, by a united Greek force, led by 10,000 Spartans.

The brutality and savageness of the Persians is well matched and contrasted by the Spartans. The Spartan culture is hard and cruel, but they are made strong by it. They share a bond that others don't readily understand. The strength of their fighting force is in their trust in each other. The Phalanx was all about trust; a man shield-protected not only himself but the man to his left. Some scenes in the movie perfectly depicted how this method of fighting worked. Xerxes was basically throwing men into a Spartan meat grinder.

Both the movie and the graphic novel take much from the history of Sparta and that famous battle, but much more was left out. To get a better understanding, we must start at the beginning. Sparta was ruled by two kings, one from the house of Agiad and the other from the house of Euripontid. It was believed that the houses were descended from the twins Eurysthenes and Procles, descedents of Heracles. A military city-state in the south of Greece, they believed that the life of every individual belonged to the state. The Spartan citizens were land owners; trades and vocations other than the army were forbidden. The Peroikoi were people who were free but had no political rights; they were the tradesmen and merchants. The Helots were serfs who were bound to farms and forced to work for the citizens who owned the land. The Helots, little better than slaves, were not strictly controlled in matters of marriage and children, and therefore they vastly outnumbered their hated masters. Only the amazing organization and fighting force kept the Helots under control.

Sparta was headed by the two kings, who ruled together and served as high priests and leaders during wars. The legislative power was entrusted to a council made up of 30 Spartan citizens. Two of these men were the kings, and the other 28 were chosen from men over the age of 60. In addition to the council were the Ephors, a sort of cabinet of five men. The Ephors, depicted as "inbred swine," were the overseers and were elected annually. They were in charge of civil trials, foreign policy, and military training. Plato called them "tyrants who ran Sparta," and they were known to imprison or execute Helots for no reason.

As correctly depicted in both the graphic novel and the movie, newborns that were weak or unhealthy were cast into a chasm and left to die. This was done to ensure that only the strong call themselves Spartans. The children who lived were brought up under severe discipline. They would also go through the gauntlet of older children beating them with whips. Upon leaving the Agoge, they would be sorted into small groups to go out and kill troublesome Helots or ones that were wandering the countryside. They learned to endure hardship and pain without complaint and were taught that retreat or surrender was disgraceful. Spartan girls were also taught and trained, but not to such a severe degree. The girls learned gymnastics and fighting in order to protect the young while the army was away. The largest threat to Spartan young were the Helots.

At age 20 the men were in the Spartan Army, but they were not full citizens until the age of 30. While allowed to marry, they stayed in barracks and were members of syssitias. The men were also not allowed to reside with their wives until they were 35. Men who did not follow all of the rules and protocols (or failed) were considered lesser men/citizens and only retained some civil rights. Nothing was easy; everything was used and meant to train. The men of Sparta did only one thing: they were soldiers.

The women of Sparta, mainly left out of the movie and comic, had a very different life. They wore short dresses and could go where they pleased, while women in Athens wore long dresses and were hardly seen outside. Like the men, they trained and exercised almost if not totally nude. These women enjoyed a status that was not seen in the rest of the world. As Queen Gorgo says, "Only Spartan women give birth to real men," and for this, the women were treated very well. They owned lands and were educated, and they even competed in the Heraea Games. Women who died in a divine office or in childbirth were allowed to have marked headstones, the same honor given to a solider who died during a victorious campaign.

In both the graphic novel and the movie, it is stated that the Spartans are fighting for freedom, a way of life, and a "future that is surely brighter than any we can imagine." To expand on that idea for a moment, if the Persians had completely succeeded, they would have snapped the strings of democracy in ancient Greece. The Persians would have set up local tyrants to rule. The survival of Greek culture and ideals, then, depended on the ability of the city-states to band together and fight against the Persians, who greatly outnumbered them.

As depicted in 300, King Leonidas led 300 members of his personal guard to Thermopylae where they met the Persian army of King Xerxes. During their march north, they met with about 7,000 other free Greeks. King Leonidas was put in charge. At this point, much of what is seen is true. Xerxes sent a message ordering the Greeks to deliver their weapons. "Come and take them," was the Spartan King's reply.

An archeological dig conducted in 1939 produced so many spear and arrowheads that the scientists believed that the Persians' arrows did indeed "blot out the sun." King Leonidas held the pass at Thermopylae for three days until the Persians were led to a mountain pass by the Greek traitor Ephialtes, outflanking them. Leonidas sent the majority of the troops to safety, but he remained with his 300 Spartans and their Helots to delay the Persians. The stand of Leonidas and his men gave Greece the precious time they needed to prepare and gather their forces.

All were killed, bound by their beliefs as Spartans ... they had no other choice.