However, I now believe that anyone can change their beliefs, forming new attitudes, setting new values thus allowing the individual to make new choices. To sum up the plot of the movie in a nutshell, Walt Kowalski is a racist Korean War veteran who demonstrates his bigotry attitudes towards his new neighbors who are Hmong. He recently lost his wife, estranged from not only his children but also his grandchildren who are more interested in his possessions. His prized possession and joy was his 1972 Gran Torino which reminded him of a happier time in his life working at the Ford assembly plant.
He is clearly still haunted by the horrors he witnessed and the violent acts the war had him commit. An unsuccessful attempt from the Hmong teenager next door from a forced gang initation to steal his Gran Torino vehicle, forced Walt into forming a relationship with the family furthering him to reanalyze his beliefs. He was eventually able to lay to rest his painful memories of the past by facing his own prejudice racist attitude face to face. He was able to overcome his oppressing behavior allowing the two diverse groups to form a mutual friendship.
His death in the end shows support of the minority group, protecting them from the gang for years to come. The movie Gran Torino portrays three diverse groups of people, taking place in the greater Detroit neighborhood. Each subculture faces quite a few social issues ranging from racism, prejudice attitudes, stereotyping, discrimination, ageism, sexism and harassment. Caucasian, Hmong and gangs are the main subcultures the movie explores. A Subculture is a culture within a broader mainstream culture, with its own separate values, practices, and beliefs (http://www. cramster. om/definitions/subculture/825) The most identifiable social aspect of diversity is seen with all the discrimination in the neighborhood demonstrated by each group. When Walt first notices the Hmong family he refers to Thao, the male teenager, as a “zipperhead”. Other racial and ethnic slurs that he commonly used to insult the Hmong are; gooks, spooks, fish heads, swamp rats, egg roll, zip, chink, jungle people, ginny and minks. He does routinely use the slurs with his Caucasian friends however you can notice the difference when referenced with his relaxed facial expressions and humorous behavior.
The Essay on Body Image Fitness Attitudes Group
Linking Media with Fitness Perceptions: A Study on the Affect of Media on Fitness and Body ImageAbstractThis research examined the media and how it affects fitness and body image. This was assessed by collecting data from surveys taken by three groups of ten high school students, five of each sex. Two of the three groups were exposed to different media packages, one depicted images of unnaturally ...
I found it quite surprising when Sue was being harassed by the African American teenagers on the street,Walt not once used the term “nigger” when interacting with yet another minority group. Even when telling the joke “ A Mexican, a Jew and a colored guy walked into a bar” he was able to refrain from using any type of racial slur that would have been used attached to one of African American background. I started to think that perhaps the writer thought it was socially acceptable to discriminate against the Hmong culture but not the people of color.
The gang uses discrimination against Walt by believing him to be an old man who would be unable to hold his own grounds and easily been taken advantage of. Our book defines discrimination as “ actions carried out by a member of a dominant group that have a negative impact on a member of subordinate group. ” (Understanding Human Differences 3rd Edition (pg 9) Koppelman,Kent, 2011) The gang believes they are dominant group or they have the power in the neighborhood by their actions of toughness, intimidation and threats.
They show this belief by using peer pressure and oppression to entice Thao to steal Walt’s precious Gran Torino. This also demonstrates the next social issues of ageism. Ageism is the stereotyping and or discrimination against any individual because of their age, old or young. The gang believed in the stereotype of the elderly to be weak, fragile alone, an easy target. They engaged with behavior of violence and harassment. Walt looks like he is ready to explode with anger on his birthday when his son and daughter in-law suggest that he move into an assisted living home, saying “with mom gone” and “a lot to keep up and clean. Along with the gift of a rather large phone with wide touch buttons imply his age is affecting him and he is unable to properly care for himself, despite the fact that he has yet to physically or mentally show that his age has any affect on his abilities to properly care for himself. They too showed acts of ageism against Walt and he in return stood against ageism. Thao’s own family, his cousin Spider, is the gang’s leader and is determined to recruit Thao into their world and turn him into a real man. He believes Sue is feminizing Thao by having him do ‘women’s’ work like gardening and dishes.
The Term Paper on African American Men Program Fae
At times I often sit about on my front porch, in my car, or where ever I can a good thought. I think about the future of Americas youth. Especially our African American Youth, and young African American men to be more specific. I see neighborhoods being infested with drugs, and gangs with our young African American boys and men as the leaders and the targets of these so-called! SS businesses!" . I ...
Research shows children with absent fathers are most vulnerable and problematic children leading them in search of a ‘father’ figure. (http://www. associatedcontent. com/article/2574839/absent_fathers_and_the_effects_on_children. html? cat=25) We can see how the gang seeks out Thao by providing him with the tools, respect, and acceptance into their group by having him steal Walt’s vehicle. Walt also supports the stereotype of a ‘women’s’ duties by taking him out of the garden and providing him with an opportunity to become a man by doing a man’s job in the construction field.
He also provides him with the tools, respect and acceptance to become what Walt’s perspective is to be a man. He also teaches Thao to talk with profane and politically incorrect affection, like a real American man. The gang shows retaliation by the severe beating and rap of Thai’s sister Sue, another example of sexism. The myth of rape only being committed by violent strangers, is proven to be false here. Sue did know her attackers and she may have even sensed something was eventually going to happen considering all the violence the gang had caused.
The Essay on Ding, Ding, Ding, Let The Match Begin: Gang Vs. Club
The vast selection of words that a person can choose in order to relate his or her message to other people makes language versatile and great. Like most languages, the English Language has numerous words that have the same meaning; these pairs of words are called synonyms. Even if a pair of words is a synonym, their connotations can be different. An example of a pair of synonyms with different ...
A few other stereotypes we draw from the movie included, African Americans standing on a street corner accosting the Asian girl, the Mexican gang in their stereotypical gear, the idea of Hmong girls going to college (the most model of model minorities) and the Hmong boys going to jail (due to lack of social support).
In the scene with the African American standing on the corner with Sue, her white male friend refers to the African Americans as ‘bro’ and is seen with the typical stereotypical gangster clothing. Walt upports another stereotype of the Asians to be smart, by questioning Sue’s judgment in the truck ride home saying “ I thought all you Asians girls were supposed to be smart. ” Once the individuals in the film were able to overcome their personal perspectives, prejudices and learn about each others culture through experiences they formed new beliefs, allowing them to bond and form a really special relationship. Gran Torino is a great example of the relationships of values, beliefs, attitudes and choices. We know that our beliefs or perspectives form our attitudes.
Our attitudes contribute to what we hold as values, thus allowing us to make choices. We see Walt in the beginning as a racist war veteran who’s life was changing right before his eyes with no control. He undergoes an internal transformation, through the help of education from both Sue and Thao, and welcomed the diversity between the two cultures. This begin evident on Walt’s birthday when we see him sitting at the neighbors kitchen table eating up not only the food but also the attention the Hmong women were giving him. This scene was one of my favorite parts.
I began to sympathize and became joyed because he was actually indeed looking beyond physical differences, cultures, sociology-economic class and started to truly enjoy the company he was in by looking at each person as an individual rather than just a group he once has hatred for. I believe that not only because of the Hmong’s persistence was Walt able to overcome his racist attitudes because of his past, but also in part because his children were not interested in forming a healthy relationship with him. He was lonely and rejected from his children and found comfort, respect and trust from his neighbors who were Hmong.
The Term Paper on Understanding the Meaning of Interpersonal Relationships
Interpersonal relationship has been generally defined as an association between two or more individuals. The relationship becomes interpersonal depending on emotions such as liking or love, standard business associations, or any other kind of social loyalty. There are several scenarios where interpersonal relationships can occur for example friends, family, acquaintances, neighborhoods, family, ...
He ultimately made a choice based of his new found values. I sacrificed his life in order to protect Sue, Thao and their entire family and even possibility the whole neighborhood from the gang that harassed all of them. I was raised not only in a household that accepted all aspects of diversity, but also a society. From little on I was taught the importance to put aside all physical differences and welcome with open arms anyone whom I meet over the course of my lifetime. Knowing that we are all just as equal as the next person and learning from each others differences will help create a better nderstanding of not only ourselves but the others around us. This helps promotes a happier and healthy environment for all to enjoy. I also think individuals who were raised during the time that these issues caused more of a problem have a harder time adjusting to diversity in today’s society. This is clear with Walt’s attitudes, and the solution is clear through socialization and social change that society must face in order to create a more acceptable diverse means of life. After the tragic yet heroic death of Walt, his newly changed values carried on through his will.
