How Does American Beauty Relate To Sociology

1315 Words3 Pages

“Remember those posters that said, “Today is the first day of the rest of your life”? Well, that’s true of everyday but one – the day you die.” – Lester Burnham The critically acclaimed film, American Beauty has been a topic of conversation since it debuted in theaters in 1999. The film currently sits at the 63rd spot for best movies on IMBD along with 8.4/10 stars and a 88% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It was produced by Dreamwork Studios, written by Alan Ball, and directed by Sam Mendes. As if the title did not give it away; the film was made and filmed inside the United States and takes place in a residential neighborhood in California for the most part. The movie managed to win five Oscars on eight nominations; these include awards such as Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Director, Best Writing Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen, and Best Cinematography …show more content…

The main character Lester Burnham is the best example of defiance as he begins to break down and do things such as smoke weed and quit his job to work at a fast food restaurant. Lester does this because the pressure of the day-to-day upkeep of his “perfect” life gets too much for him. Lester isn’t the only one who is defiant; we see this trait in Carolyn’s affair and Ricky’s drug dealing. The worst part about the defiance that the characters display is that they believe it will lead them to happiness when in reality the only thing that will provide happiness is being honest with themselves and others. It’s the pressure of trying to cover up their defiance and unhappiness, which leads them to go off the deep end and react extremely. It is within this battle of covering things up that we can find the beauty in the movie and it was the director is trying to portray. The beauty is all an illusion used to trick people into believing things are one way when in reality they are completely

Show More
Related

  • Courga in Colin McDougall´s The Firing Squad and George Orwell’s Shooting an Elephant

    1007 Words  | 3 Pages

    Both Captain John Adam and George Orwell demonstrated how their character drove their courage to be deciding factors for major decisions, whether it be negatively or positively. While Adam thought what he chose was a better decision and leading to the end he continued to being a coward until his finale and Orwell failed to be as courageous as he could have been, they both showed how their courage was a driving factor to make the most difficult decisions. Their courage was undisputed displayed in their actions throughout the stories, Orwell failed to find the courage to speak against what happened while John Adam was strong enough to find the courage to go against the pressure of people around him. Both of these stories display the importance of courage, and facing your fear of being shunned by criticizing surrounding and to stand up for what is right.

    Read More

  • Literary Analysis Essay On The Memory Keeper's Daughter

    479 Words  | 1 Pages

    The greatest conflict in the book was Man vs. Man for David, because he had to face his childhood of when his sister June had died due to down syndrome. This internal conflict led to the guilt he experienced when dealing with the secret of giving his daughter Phoebe away and lying to Norah(his wife) that Phoebe had died at birth. Norah and the family later realised Phoebe was alive but in that time frame before that the family was falling apart.

    Read More

  • Beauty, Biology, and Society

    1541 Words  | 4 Pages

    What is beauty? How do human beings decide who is attractive and who is not? Society is full of messages telling us what is beautiful, but what are those definitions based on? Do we consciously decide whom we are attracted to, or is biology somehow involved? The issue of beauty and how we define it has been studied for centuries. Scholars from all fields of study have searched for the "formula" for beauty. Darwin in his book The Descent of Man wrote, "It is certainly not true that there is in the mind of man any universal standard of beauty with respect to the human body. It is however, possible that certain tastes in the course of time become inherited, though I have no evidence in favor of this belief." (1) Science has tried to look at beauty beyond the conscious level. It has tried to determine what roles biology plays in human attraction. Scientists have discovered that symmetry and scent play a role in defining human attraction. (3) But while this can begin to explain beauty on the most basic of levels, what accounts for variations in the standard of beauty? The idea of beauty varies within different societies and communities. Do these cultural preferences have a biological basis? What is the relationship between biology and society in relation to the idea of beauty? How do they relate to each other, and how do they differ? In particular what role does science play in the preference that many societies, (in particular South Asian, East Asian, and North American Cultures), have for fairer skin?

    Read More

  • The Everchanging Perception of Beauty

    904 Words  | 2 Pages

    What is beauty? It seems like a simple enough question, yet it has an extremely elusive, ever-changing answer according to American society. What is “popular” or “stylish” at the moment could be completely obsolete the next. This question has plagued societies for ages and continues to motivate women all over the world go to drastic lengths in their search for beauty. As women in remote Asian villages search to attain beauty by stretching their necks with heavy metal coils (Anitei) and women in America lie in enclosed melanoma-inducing tunnels of light so they can emerge gloriously tanned (Is Indoor Tanning Safe?), God has another, far more fulfilling plan for true beauty. Beauty in American society is so fluid, elusive, and superficial that it doesn’t possibly equate to the plan that God has for women to view themselves. Real beauty comes from character, confidence, and an identity in Christ.

    Read More

  • American Beauty Mla Citation

    342 Words  | 1 Pages

    Given four stars by Roger Ebert, the film American Beauty was released in 1999. Ebert seemed to really like this film. Using terms like “right choice” and “embodies intelligence” when speaking of Kevin Spacey’s eyes and voice being the right actor for this film. Ebert commented that this movie was a comedy because we as views laugh at the absurdity of the hero’s problems. He feels the performances in this film walk a line between parody and simple realism. He did not seem to have anything negative to say about the actors, plot or any other aspect of this film. Calling “American Beauty” the kind of film where you prove something important, if only to yourself as opposed to the kind of victory you get in a feel-good movie.

    Read More

  • Existentialism In American Beauty

    800 Words  | 2 Pages

    Both of these existentialists differ also when it comes to their approach to living the authentic life. Sartre has a direct approach in which he asks the individual to acknowledge death as simply another stage of life, in which one should be responsible of his own choices and not think of life as seen by others. Heidegger in the other hand, seeks to contemplate death, even if it brings anxiety, thus having to transcend the facticity that may stop us from being authentic. In other words, Sartre sees humans as the creatures that define existence, while Heidegger sees humans as merely followers of the idea of being, “Man is not the lord of beings. Man is the shepherd of Being”.

    Read More

  • American Beauty

    1491 Words  | 3 Pages

    American Beauty, directed by Sam Mendes in 1999, is one of the best and most unique films I have ever seen. One of the opening scenes of the movie starts with a view of Lester Burnham, his attractive, blonde wife Carolyn Burnham and their daughter Janie and what seems to be what seems to be the Burnhams picture perfect life and picture perfect marriage. The suburban house with the clean cut lawn and perfect garden, white picket fence, the oak trees lining the street, the two cars parked in the driveway, typical ordinary suburban neighborhood. But what Mendes emphasizes throughout the film is to look closer, and it will be clear that nothing is as it seems, there is always more to the story then what appears on the surface. No one is perfect, even a rose has its thorns.

    Read More

  • American Beauty Scene Analysis

    655 Words  | 2 Pages

    The analysis of the visual style is to first consider in the composition of the movie. Some directors pay attention to formal and dramatic composition, the others emphasize on non-formal compositions and exposure or highlighting effects. Furthermore, other directors use camera movements to describe and demonstrate the theme and the film itself more efficiently to the audiences. That is, many cinematic compositions have each intention to be used in the film by directors’ purpose. American Beauty (199) by Sam Mendes is a verisimilar movie story line with realism sense. The film is a story about aspects of contemporary American society, delivering typical American culture to the audience, such as individualism, distinct relationship

    Read More

  • The Role Of Consumerism In American Beauty

    378 Words  | 1 Pages

    Furthermore, American Beauty challenges common sense views such as how money and wealth is seen as the measure of success, and that through commodities individuals will find happiness, however this is often a fallacy perpetuated by the mass media. By subverting the ideology of consumerism Mendes condemns how worth of an individual is determined by what they consume and own, rather than the qualities of them. He refers to how the mass media uses propaganda in advertising to indoctrinate individuals into adopting consumerist values such as hedonism, which restrains freethinking and choice. American Beauty demonstrates how reality can often become synonymous with simulations, and that through capitalism individuals are controlled to consume commodities

    Read More

  • What is Beauty: Unrealistic and Unobtainable

    955 Words  | 2 Pages

    For centuries mankind has unsuccessfully attempted to define beauty. Greek philosophers, including Plato, tried to define beauty as if it were as simple as any other law in nature. However this cannot be so because the idea of what is beautiful has varied throughout cultures and the ages. In the 1800s women who were pale and rather plump were considered objects of desire; but in today’s society, desirable women are slender and tan, among other things. The fact is that today, beauty is as unobtainable as it is indefinable. All of today’s supermodels, as seen in millions of advertisements, have been modified, airbrushed, and photoshopped. Women desiring this beauty have turned to various sources of false remedies, spending thousands of dollars, in hope that they too can be beautiful. The media has twisted and warped our ideal definition of beauty into something that does not exist naturally and is simply inaccessible.

    Read More

  • David Brooks's Article: What Is Beauty?

    1139 Words  | 3 Pages

    What is beauty? I have heard this question many times. I have heard the judge ask the contestant at a beauty pageant on television. I have heard professors ask us students in thought-invoking classes. I have heard it inside my head, my own inner voice, asking myself at night when I am left alone and the deep questions start coming in. What is beauty? And how are we to criticize or judge if one possess beauty or not?

    Read More

  • Film Analysis Of The Film 'American Beauty'

    712 Words  | 2 Pages

    American Beauty (1999) is an American drama film which stars Kevin Spacey as Lester Burnham, a man who is seen to be having a midlife crisis and becomes sexually attracted/interested in his teenage daughter’s best friend. As the film progresses this attraction leads him to make major changes in his life in order to cope up with his urges, and thus these changes somehow helps him to manage and tackle his midlife crisis. This film written by Alan Ball and directed by Sam Mendes tries to show how the American middle class may view beauty and personal attraction. This film uses humor, irony and ridicule to show and criticize people's stereo types of American families. The film takes an approach to portray everything an American middle class family

    Read More

  • The Influence Of Beauty In The Media

    1206 Words  | 3 Pages

    “I want to look like Miranda Kerr! Or even better, I want to walk on the runway with models wearing Vera Wang,” said 18-year-old Maggie.

    Read More

  • Perception Of Beauty Essay

    904 Words  | 2 Pages

    Beauty can be seen by a person in several ways, and it is perceived by most to be only skin-deep. According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, “It is the quality or aggregate of qualities in a person that gives pleasure to the senses or pleasurably exalts the mind or spirit.” Additionally, the definition from the Oxford Dictionary says, “Beauty is a combination of qualities, such as shape, color, or form that pleases the aesthetic senses, especially the sight.” In short, beauty is described as something attractive and likeable to the eyes. Nonetheless, beauty should not be seen on a physical level, but it should also encompass a person’s character. To further elaborate and understand beauty, one should know how the media perceives beauty towards

    Read More

  • Beauty and Perfection in Today´s Society

    706 Words  | 2 Pages

    In today’s society, beauty and perfection is being striven for like never before. Confronted with all the “beautiful” celebrities and photo-shopped magazine pictorials, women are facing an unrealistic expectation of how they should look. If they don’t have a thigh gap or a lean stomach, girls feel commensurate with themselves and try to change how they look just to appeal to society. How often have we been told as children that beauty on the inside is all that matters, yet we see and live by different statements. We live in a shallow culture based on looks. Look at all the celebrities we see. How many of them actually have talent or are worth such a high status if they did not have their looks? I wish I could say that there was a time period where this statement was not true, but it can’t be said, with the key example being Marge Piercy's poem, “Barbie Doll”. She wrote this poem in 1973 and its message on body image can still apply to today's time period.

    Read More

More about How Does American Beauty Relate To Sociology

Open Document