Rebel without Cause vs. The World Today
Rebel Without A Cause is a movie about three troubled, identity-seeking teenagers alienated from the world of their parents. Each of the movie’s main characters is searching for understanding, companionship, and a sense of belonging, much like most of the teenagers today, Erikson’s stages and personal experiences. Even though the movie is dated, it depicts the main problems and concerns that teens currently face. It presents the problems and the viewer is left to ponder how they’ll turn out. I could identify with this movie on many levels.
The movie seems to tell the audience that just because teenagers do some bad things, doesn’t mean they’re bad at heart. I agree. In the movie, Jim is pressured into participating in a chickie run with a local gang leader named Buzz. A chickie run is where two guys race in a car towards a cliff. The first one to jump out from his car is a chicken. Jim feels he has something to prove. He doesn’t want to race, but he feels he has to show everyone he’s tough. Often times teenagers try their best to avoid trouble. If necessary they will put their lives on the line, all for the sake of their reputation.
Erikson’s psychological stages help us better to understand our characters, such as Jim Stark. Throughout the movie Jim shows us characteristics of an “Adolescent” try to fit in, not only with his friends but also with his family. But things aren’t that easy for Jim, because he plays a different role for everyone in the movie, but himself. To Plato, he is a father figure and his first real friend. To Judy he is a lover. To his parents, he is a confused boy looking for a place to belong. Jim is constantly being molded into this figure that his peers have portrayed for him, and because he is new he wants to make a good first impression. The last thing that he wants is to be called a chicken. During the movie we see quite a bit of change in him, in that he grows from and “Adolescent” to a “Young Adult.” He starts to understand that he can’t always solve problems by getting into fights with people. But at the end we finally see Jim where he belongs.
The Essay on The Progressive Era People Things Problem
The Progressive EraT he progressive era was a time of great change, the way people thought and what they did began to change quickly. Industry and business also changed a great deal in this era, with the many new inventions and strong businessmen things where rapidly changing. The progressive era lasted about 40 years, from 1879-1920. In 1879 Tomas Edison invented the electric light, I guess you ...
Throughout my life I have never really had trouble belonging somewhere, because I was very athletic, and still am. I’ll admit it was a little difficult for me fitting in with the “popular” girls, but I was a well-rounded person. I was friends with everyone. Even though it was much easier to fit in with the guys, I never stopped trying to fit in with the girls. Confidence is something I think I don’t always have too much of. This also hindered me quite a bit as well. But I never gave up.
Teens today have to realize that to be popular they don’t have to be friends with certain people. They just have to find that group of people that accept them for who they are, faults and all. We all have to learn that everyone is born differently, and we should judge a book by its cover.
