What is the meaning of 'As' of this sentence in the movie Kingdom Of Heaven?
In the movie "Kingdom Of Heaven", The king suffering from leprosy is talking about Arabs.
"The Saracens say that this disease is God's vengeance against the vanity of our kingdom. As wretched as I am, these Arabs believe that the chastisement that awaits me in hell is far more severe and lasting. If that's true, I call it unfair."

I want to know what the meaning of 'as' is in the second sentence.
Does the phrase "As wretched as I am" mean "while I'm being wretched" or "Like me being wretched"?

Question

What is the meaning of 'As' of this sentence in the movie Kingdom Of Heaven?
In the movie "Kingdom Of Heaven", The king suffering from leprosy is talking about Arabs.
"The Saracens say that this disease is God's vengeance against the vanity of our kingdom. As wretched as I am, these Arabs believe that the chastisement that awaits me in hell is far more severe and lasting. If that's true, I call it unfair."

I want to know what the meaning of 'as' is in the second sentence.
Does the phrase "As wretched as I am" mean "while I'm being wretched" or "Like me being wretched"?

Answer

"as" in this context can be understood as a comparisons, meaning I show a high degree of "being wretched".  "as" does also refer to a time in the past in a certain context, for instance "He always had good grades as a student"

Answer

We use "as......as" here to provide some context for the part that comes afterwards. He is saying that even though he is wretched, the Arabs believe he should be punished in a way that he feels is excessive. Let me give some examples of how I would use it: As cold as it is in my city, the temperature seldom falls below zero. As generous as your father is, I don't think he will buy you a new car.

Answer

It is used to show a contrast. "As wretched as I am...." This part shows that the King knows that he is dying, his life is bad etc...."these Arabs believe that the chastisement that awaits me in hell is far more severe and lasting." This part shows that the Arabs believe that the King's life when he dies and goes to hell will be much more wretched.

We can use this pattern to compare things
Eg
As poor as I am now, when the economy collapse I will be desolate.

Hope this helps somewhat.

Answers · 3

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