'Sweetness and light' (in the eyes of Arnold)

So, up until last night, I was really struggling to find a media text which I thought offered the 'sweetness and light' that Matthew Arnold - school inspector, minor poet and critic of cultural decline - talked of. Arnold argued that culture is 'the best that is thought or said' and culture improves us and is the key to education.

So, very uninspired at that point, I visited the cinema to see the much-anticipated Clint Eastwood epic Invictus - starring Morgan Freeman as the incredible social and political champion Nelson Mandela.

It took little more than 10 minutes of the film for the penny to drop. The film takes the very essence of cultural and social divide in South Africa and tells the incredible story of one man - oppressed by white South African culture for more than 30 years - and his mission to build bridges and unite the country through its passion for rugby.

So, why does it offer me 'sweetness and light?' Well, I think it can offer all those who see the film an insight into the terrible ways in which cultures can divide a nation and how we should be more accepting of differences in social and political beliefs.

Several moments within the film gave me reason to think 'yes, that is the best that is thought or said'. Mandela utters the words 'I am the master of my faith, I am the captain of my soul' - he sees the wrong committed during the apartheid but he fails to let his own pain and suffering stand in the way of making a change to a whole nation, divided for so long by different cultures.

The film communicates many values which I think make it such a great example of Arnold's 'sweetness and light'.

Forgiveness - Mandela is so openly forgiving of the people who kept him captive for nearly 30 years because of his skin colour and background. I think this is the most valuable lesson we can learn.

Acceptance and tolerance - of other people and their beliefs; race, skin colour and social background should not blur our perceptions of those around us.

Determination and courage - to succeed in our aims in life and overcome the biggest of boundaries to fulfil what we truly believe in.

I certainly came away from the film inspired by the story of such an important figure in democracy, human rights and social reform and I hope that everyone who sees it takes away valuable lessons that Mandela has preached his entire life.