As young adults we crave independence. We get tired of our parents telling us what to do, and always look forward to the day when we no longer have to rely on them. We want our freedom, but we never stop to think what life would be like if we had it. In the 1955 film, Rebel Without a Cause, we see a character named Plato living with that freedom. Not by choice, but by his neglectful parents. He gives us a taste of how life without parental control can be damaging to one’s self being, and the absence of parental love and authority can have us seeking the attention we desire in unethical ways. In this case, it causes insecurities, disturbs his mental state, and makes him delusional. It is quite clear from the beginning that Plato’s abandonment …show more content…
His delusions are expressed through his relationship with his friends Judy and, most importantly, Jim. Plato’s deprivation of love and attention is immediately noticed after he “is offered Jim 's dark brown jacket to keep warm, but refuses it,” (Dirks). Jim overhears the maid point out that Plato is shivering and without hesitation makes an attempt to comfort him. Stunned by Jim’s kind and caring gesture; “the paternal act of kindness is typically rejected by the hurt boy,” Dirks continues. The attention he received from a male figure spoke to him on a deep level. “Hey, you want to come home with me? I mean, there 's nobody home at my house, and heck, I 'm not tired. Are you? See, I don 't have too many people I can talk to... If you want to come, we could talk, and in the morning we could have breakfast like my dad used to. Gee, if only you could have been my dad,” a desperate Plato asks. Throughout the film we see Plato’s feelings toward Jim progress from friend to family like love. Plato makes his feelings clear to both Judy and Jim in many ways. One way he does this is by lying about his family. For example, when the three friends run off to a mansion they have some time to talk among themselves. Jim and Judy ask him questions about his life. Plato responds by falsely informing them that he “used to lie in my crib at night and I 'd listen to them fight” and that his …show more content…
We all have those moments when we wish we didn’t have them. Deep inside us, we know that the absence of our parents leads to a depressing, unfulfilling life. I don’t believe Plato to be a horrible person. If his parents would have made time for their only son, he would have had a sense of self. He wouldn’t have lived a chaotic life looking for love to fill that empty hole in his heart. He wasn’t a bad boy he was just looking for a hand to hold in the lonely world he lived in. As we can see, it affected Plato’s state of mind and his ability to “comprehend, much less maintain, any form of a healthy relationship,” as Danny Weitzman says. The lack of attention affects everyone differently, some learn to cope with it and others find ways to regain it. The lesson of the film here is that parents need to invest more time in their children. Children and teens act out in need of attention and sometimes it can be difficult to keep up with hormonal teens; but we need to learn how to read our children. Time and devotion are keys to learning more about one another and having a happy family. Rebel Without A Cause explains to us the importance of family, communication, and presence. It helps us understand that life without the love of family can place us in a desperate and confusing world; somewhere no one should be a part
One of the major themes that are presented throughout the whole entire movie is the dysfunctional relationship between one of the characters and their fathers. The movie portrays father figures as problematic which then shape the actions and the characters themselves as the movie progresses. We can see all three dynamics of the father figure presented through Jim, Judy, and Plato. Through Jim, the father figure that he is presented with is a father who is weak allows himself to be walked on by Jim¡¯s mother and grandmother. Judy¡¯s father, on the other hand, is quite the opposite of Jim¡¯s father in that he is the overbearing, masculine, and insensitive. Lastly, we see the absence of a father figure in the life of Plato which completes the list from all three sides.
David Roediger, helps us understand “self-emancipation as both deeply rooted and glorious in its maturation” (p.9). The book juxtaposes stories usually not told together but David Roediger finds important connections and uses it to explain how to improve our better selves.
An obsession can begin with the smallest of events. Ideas, real or fancied, of what one’s life could be like without the ties that bind them, positive or negative, consume the mind and create visions of freedom from the demands of family, government, or even society as a whole. McCandless’s discovery of his parent’s indiscretions was the onset of his obsession; an obsession which grew exponentially over a short period of time that fettered him to the notion that to be truly happy and free, he must rid himself of everyone he had ever known and everything he had ever owned. McCandless became enslaved to his conception of real freedom. His notion of freedom was extreme, to say the least. It involved an elaborate plan to abandon his parents; separate himself from society; erase himself from the governmental grid; to ultimately arrive at the realization that to experience real freedom in happiness it, must be shared. The discovery of McCandless’s parent’s indiscretions set in motion the first step in his plan: freedom from them both.
The father’s upbringing was such that financial stability was the priority. The child learned that dads are busy and do not have time to spend with their children. What a devastating realization for a child to conclude. Yet like most little boys, this one wanted to grow up to be like his role model, no matter the example. During the time from childhood to adolescent, parental influence can be either beneficial or detrimental. If the parents have a stable home, clear boundaries and open communications with their teens, the transition could flow easier. The perfect father does not guarantee the child will not rebel.
Brassy fanfares, sweet flute melodies, and intense strings. These are the types of music that are used in the film “Rebel Without a Cause”. This film was released in 1955. James Dean, Natalie Wood, and Sal Mineo star as the lead characters of Jim Stark, Judy, and John "Plato" Crawford. The orchestra music for “Rebel Without a Cause” serves three functions: it reflects the emotions of the teens, it acts as element of the mise-en-scène, and it causes the audience to feel a particular emotion.
The youth of society tend to question and then possibly disregard the rules that are important to their parents if they do not have a good reason to believe in these rules. The rebellious actions of youth can eventually cause their own untimely destruction. (Justin K.)
Plato’s idea for a perfect government is to have three different classes to have different roles to help the society. The first group of people is the Producing class and they are responsible for providing materials and food for the city. This is where the farmers, blacksmiths, the fishermen, and other jobs like them. The second group is the Auxiliaries and they are the ones who job is to protect the city from threats, so the soldiers. The final group is the guardians, these are the philosophers and it is there job to not only be knowledgeable but to be just. Plato believes that there are several things that can derail the advancement of society. “Then nothing insane and nothing akin to dissoluteness can be involved in the right of love…Then sexual pleasure must not be involved” (121). Plato believed that sex should only be reserved for special festivals and for creating life, other than that people should keep in line with how a father and son touch each other. Plato did not just regulate what two people did in the privacy in the own home, but he also regulated what people should be learning in school. “At any rate, it ought to end where it has ended; for surely training in the musical crafts ought to end in a passion for beauty” ...
Throughout the novel A Mercy by Toni Morrison, the male characters each portray display different views on what freedom means. Centered around the idea of family, these characters each chase freedom in a way unique to them. The first male character that plays a significant role, is Jacob Vaark. Vaark is introduced early in the novel. He grows up as an orphan, then moves to England. After traveling from England to Maryland, he inherited land from his Dutch uncle. Although he acquires slaves, he never considers himself as a slave owner.
Director Nicholas Ray was lucky to have a talented composer create an original score for Rebel Without A Cause. Leonard Rosenman was born in 1924 and studied music in New York and Europe. His work as a film composer and arranger is very traditional, and has been regarded by some music critics as "insignificant." However, Rosenman received Academy Awards and Oscar nominations for his work. Along with film scores, Rosenman wrote theme music and scores for numerous television shows. The score in Rebel Without A Cause is much like another film starring James Dean, East of Eden.
This article was interesting to read. This article makes me think about all of my siblings who I have seen grown up around me and I can relate the article to their life. One adolescent that comes in mind is someone who would have parents that would try to get involve in school work and other activities. The only problem was that the school climate and the friends that surrounded this adolescent didn’t help at all. This led to a lot of conduct problems like running away from home, smoking, and coming home after
Rosen, Christine. "The Parents Who Don't Want To Be Adults." Commentary 127.7 (2009): 31. MAS Ultra - School Edition. Web. 13 Dec. 2013.
The movie begins with the family and parenting styles concept of child development by introducing the audience to the main character James and his parents. James lives in a two-parent household with his authoritative parents who are providing him with warmth, love, and encouragement (Levine & Munsch, pp. 521-522). This concept of parenting styles is shown as the movie begins and James is seen spending time with his parents. Then suddenly, James’ world changes and he is abandoned as a result of his parents being killed. This causes James to become orphaned and forced to live with his authoritarian aunts, Spiker and Sponge. Aunt Spiker and Aunt Sponge are very controlling towards James and expect him to obey their rules without allowing him to express his feelings. This authoritarian behavior is seen throughout the movie. Aunt Spiker and Aunt Sponge are also uninvolved, neglectful, and abusive, using verbal and physical punishment on James when they feel it’s necessary, which is also seen throughout the movie (Levine & Munsch, p. 522). These behaviors cause James to develop lower self-esteem, show less intellectual curiosity, and feel lonely and afraid, which are typical outcomes of an authoritarian parenting approach (Levine & Munsch, pp. 521-523). Although James’ aunts’ authoritative parenting style has an effect on his emotional and social behaviors, it is his parents authoritative parenting that plays a...
It is Plato’s opining that living without nuclear families would allow the whole society to work together as one entity; in this idea the whole community is seen as a family. The overall goal of this idea is to promote unanimity and decrease opposition. He states that it is best for a society to share their experiences and use these experiences to come together. In this society, there will not be favoritism towards ones relatives and what is just will be seen as most important. Since the guardian class will have wives and children in common, then they will also have mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters in common. Plato makes this clear when he states that, “All the citizens rejoice and are pained by the same success and failures, doesn’t this sharing of pleasures and pains bind the city together.”( Republic, bk. 5, 462). The successes of others will be seen as their own, since everyone is, in a sense, related. “Our citizens, then, are devoted to a c...
While most parents realize there are normal struggles between parents and teens as their sons and daughters struggle for independence and identity, they are often shocked by the length and intensity of the conflict. They are stunned by apparent rejection of some of their most sacred values and confused by their teenagers "acting up" and "acting out." In attempting to become psychologically independent of their parents, teens often attempt to move completely away from any control or influence by their parents.
In America, the society runs on what teenagers want. From Nicki Minaj to the junior section at Sears, most of what the people see, hear, or touch is aimed at the teenagers. Being an adolescent is probably the most exciting and most popular time period in a person’s life. The teens seem to have it all, but what about the parents who raise them? The parents of the teenagers never get any credit during this time period, although they have every right to. Parents and teenagers should strive for a strong, lasting relationship for these years, though most times there isn’t one. The relationship between teenagers and parents is the most vital bond in the family because this relationship should and will prepare them for the next step in life.