Pretty Woman Essay

Pretty Woman, is a romantic comedy that tells the story of a prostitute who is saved from her life on the streets by a rich businessman. Julia Roberts plays the role of Vivian Ward, the prostitute who is barely making a living on the streets. Richard Gere plays the role of Edward Lewis, the successful businessman who falls in love with Vivian. The two characters meet when Edward needs directions to his hotel, while staying in Los Angeles for a business trip. Edward pays Vivian $3000 to be his date for various business events. Both characters end up falling in love. Through the movie, in many different scenes, the characters display identity management, self-fulfilling prophecy, social exchange theory, stereotyping, and reflected appraisal.
The first concept displayed in the film was identity management. This

This concept is a fixed impression of a group of people which we than perceive specific individuals. An example of this in the movie is when Edward is stereotyping Vivian into the role of a drug user because she is a prostitute, not because of who she is.
The fifth concept in the film was reflected appraisal. The concept is what others communicate to us about who we are. Edward uses reflected appraisal when he points out that Vivian is indeed a hooker. Another example of this concept in the film is in the scene where Vivian shares her story with Edward of how she got involved in her profession. Her history with men, previous jobs, and prostitution suggests that she has molded her self-concept from negative appraisals of others. This scene conveys a clear example of how others’ appraisals can shape one’s self-concept. Vivian leaves Edward and returns to her apartment. In the end, Edward realized that he loves Vivian and arrives at her apartment in a white limousine. Vivian gets her “fairy tale” ending. The concepts discussed are only a glimpse of the interpersonal communication their relationship consists