Happiness In The Film 'American Beauty'

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One theme that is present in the film American Beauty is that one can discover happiness in many different ways. Depending on how you interpret different part of the movie you can learn that happiness exists as a myth, as a goal, and as a disguise. All of the characters in the film are going after the pursuit of happiness in their own way. All the characters have very different ideas about what happiness is to them and how to find it, but this is what makes this film a good one. One of the overarching themes in the movie and something that links all of the characters together despite their differences is the fact that they are all trying to live the American dream. At the beginning of the film, Lester realizes that despite all of the negativity …show more content…

She on the surface may appear to be happy, confident and outgoing, but that isn’t the real her and she only seems to be happy if others think that she is happy. It is more important to her that others believe that she is happy than herself actually being happy. The director most likely intentionally made things this way to make Lester and his wife be completely opposite of each other because this shows that each character is fighting for each others happiness. Another way that the author uses narrative structure to show that you can discover happiness in many different ways is by introducing Ricky. He is fantasizing about a girl that he thinks likes him back but she doesn’t care for him, but no matter how clear she makes it he only sees what he wants to see. He isn’t aligned with reality. This goes for the babysitter who Ricky has a crush on. Jane and the next door neighbor boy are also in search of happiness. They are both being oppressed and looked down upon by everyone in the movie that they essentially block everyone out and end up falling in love with each other and think that they are made for each other. They both are considered outcasts in the movie and they end up falling in love with each other and have discovered their happiness. The director coming up with a plot like this and setting up the structure of the film so that each character is similar but different is important to take note

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