S
i t e n a m e
What the heck?
By now, you probably have gathered that the name of this site is indeed "Shadows and Dust". You may have been wondering how I came up with it and why I decided to use it. I have a rather long history of choosing uncreative names for my websites (particularly my shrines), so it was a welcome breath of fresh air when I recalled the phrase in one of my favorite films.
That is correct, the name comes from a film, which happens to be called Gladiator. Its context is such that I think resonates with Wolf fairly well. It is a context that, regardless of whether you have seen the film or not, has an enduring quality. The phrase is spoken to the gladiator Maximus just as he leaves to fight in another death match. He gestures to the blood-lustful mob of spectators...
Maximus: Marcus Aurelius had a dream that was Rome, Proximo. That is not
it. That is not it!
Proximo: Marcus Aurelius is dead, Maximus. We mortals are but shadows and dust. Shadows and dust, Maximus!
I very much like the basic sentiment of his words here; they are a nice commentary on the futility he sees in Maximus' righteous desire for change through revenge against the corrupt state. Proximo also states that while a man cannot avoid death, he can shape the manner of his death and thus leave behind the legacy of his choosing. For Wolf, it seems that he has decided that mortals are in fact "shadows and dust", and that even a cold mercenary has the ability to change his legacy by choosing to aid the "good", by doing what he knows is truly "right".