The main external conflict in Amadeus is between Mozart and Salieri. Salieri has been court composer for quite some time. He is very talented, albeit somewhat short of inspiration. However, his work is generally admired, if not exactly loved. Then along comes Mozart, this brash, arrogant, supremely gifted genius who seems to have fallen straight from the heavens. Soon, the young pretender is the talk of the town. He is feted wherever he goes and...
The main external conflict in Amadeus is between Mozart and Salieri. Salieri has been court composer for quite some time. He is very talented, albeit somewhat short of inspiration. However, his work is generally admired, if not exactly loved. Then along comes Mozart, this brash, arrogant, supremely gifted genius who seems to have fallen straight from the heavens. Soon, the young pretender is the talk of the town. He is feted wherever he goes and celebrated as the "Next Big Thing." All of a sudden, no one is interested in Salieri's music anymore. His work seems so dull, so pedestrian, so frightfully passé, at least in comparison with the sublime compositions of Amadeus.
At the same time, there is also a very important conflict in the play between art and taste. Just as quickly as Mozart rises, so does he fall. His star rapidly fades, and his work is increasingly ignored by the Emperor and his court lackeys. As they set the tone for what is fashionable in society, Mozart soon becomes almost as out of date as Salieri. Salieri, though rather pleased to see this wunderkind come crashing down to earth with an almighty bump, does still recognize his young rival's genius. Though they never truly become bosom buddies, the two composers do develop a certain solidarity with each other in that they both know the difference between great art and mere hackwork. The problem for Salieri is—no matter how hard he tries—he simply cannot elevate his own work above the level of the second-rate. That is one conflict he can never resolve.
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