Character Analysis Of Forrest Gump: Meaning Of Life

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Forrest Gump is about a very simple-minded man. Forrest, the main character, has had a somewhat difficult childhood because he has to walk with braces on his legs and he is not very smart. However, Forrest does have a supportive mother who tries her best to make sure Forrest has everything he needs. Eventually, Forrest meets Jenny. Like Forrest, Jenny has not had the easiest childhood. Jenny has grown up being abused. She is shown wishing that she could just “fly away” from all of her problems. Eventually, Jenny helps Forrest by encouraging him to run away from some boys who are chasing him, which in turn causes his leg braces to fall off. Throughout his life Forrest meets and makes connections with several people. He meets Bubba and Lieutenant …show more content…

The overall theme running through the movie that I noticed was the theme of chance and destiny. The movie starts with a feather floating by Forrest, and it ends with that same feather. To me, that was showing the connectivity between events in our lives. Everything that Forrest did up until then, led him up to that very moment. It was showing how even though some things may seem completely random or it may not be obvious how they are connected, everything is connected. However, I think it was more so showing how we make our own lives and our own “destiny”. Some things happen by chance but we choose what to do with them. Forrest’s life was full of crazy things happening, but he never was overly affected by them. He even met the president. To me, this was showing how it’s good to sometimes go with the flow of life and see where it takes you. Forrest says, “Life was like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get.” I think this summarizes the movie very well. Another example of finding the meaning of life is seen through Lieutenant Dan’s story-line. He is seen as a very dedicated soldier. Dan felt that his life’s purpose was to die in battle just like those in his family had done before him. However, while in battle Forrest picks up Dan and saves his life. Dan loses both of his legs and wishes that Forrest would have just left him to die because that is what Dan wanted to begin with. I think this shows the struggle of finding the meaning of life. Dan thought that he had his meaning of life all figured out and when he realized that his life was not going to turn out that way, he had a really difficult time accepting it. It took him quite some time to come to terms with his life in a wheelchair. I think this can apply to many people. Sometimes circumstances cause people to have to reevaluate their meaning of life. Another example of the meaning of life I think can be

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