The Breakfast Club (1985) follows a group of five adolescents through an eight-hour long detention at their high school. The film progresses through their day evading their assistant principal and engaging in delinquent activity, all in an attempt to pass the time faster. Though all coming from different cliques and social groups, by the end of the movie, the five students come closer together and find that their differences are not as deep as they seem. Films within the popular media have tried to accurately depict what it’s like to be an adolescent and The Breakfast Club (1985) does just that. By incorporating five different students from five different cliques, Allison the basket case, Claire the prom queen, John the criminal, Brian the …show more content…
geek and and Andrew the jock, The Breakfast Club (1985) captures what it’s like to go through adolescence. Through the personal fable, conflicts with parents, sexual activity, cliques and crowds, and substance abuse, the adolescents in The Breakfast Club (1985) draw connections to adolescents in the world. The film begins at 7am at Shermer High School. 5 students, unconnected until now, show up for an eight-hour long detention. Their assistant principal, Mr. Vernon, instructs them that they are not to move during this detention. After Mr. Vernon leaves the room, the fun begins. John Bender, the criminal of the group and a frequent at Saturday detention, begins teasing students like Claire, the prom queen and Andrew the jock. During this time Brian, the geek, is constantly asking them to be quiet so that Mr. Vernon does not come in and reprimand them. Meanwhile Allison, the basket case is watching them, making small, suppressed noises occasionally. This goes on for quite some time until finally John Bender convinces them to sneak off to his locker to grab something. Not knowing what this mysterious object they are retrieving is, the group follows Bender throughout the school and to his locker. Bender pulls out a bag and inside the bag is marijuana. At this point, Brian is very concerned however the rest of the group goes along with Bender. Upon finding that they will not be able to get back to the library without being caught, Bender runs to the gymnasium and begins causing a ruckus. This distracts Mr. Vernon and the others are able to get back to the library. Once reunited, the give students begin smoking the marijuana and things begin to get out of hand. The students are dancing on the tables, running around the library and eventually begin sharing secrets about themselves. During this time each student reveals why he or she is in detention. After arguments break out the group realizes that they have a lot more in common with one another then they originally thought. After Claire gives Allison a makeover and Brian is convinced to write everyone’s essay, the eight-hour detention ends and the group leaves. The essay to Mr. Vernon describes how each of the five students will always be seen as people want them to be seen. The movie ends with John Bender walking off the football field and triumphantly raising one fist in the air. The first connection that the adolescent students in The Breakfast Club (1985) make with adolescents in the world today is their application of the personal fable.
The personal fable, as defined by Arnett (2013), is the belief among adolescents that their experience is unique and no one else can understand what they are going through (Arnett, 2013, p. 81). This proves to be true within the film as each of the students finds out that they are all similar to each other and their stories have places where overlap occurs. The overlapping theme among all five students is their parents. They realize that they all have issues that stem from experiences with their parents. Though conflicts with parents is a separate connection to adolescence, it is worth mentioning within the personal fable. Each student, upon being dropped off for detention, has some sort of interaction with their parents. These interactions hint at what they end up talking about after they smoke Benders marijuana. They each come in to detention thinking that they are alone in the issues that they face and that no one else understands them when in reality each one of them shares real experiences with one another. The personal fable is the first of many connections to adolescence today in The Breakfast Club …show more content…
(1985). A second connection that can be drawn between adolescence and The Breakfast Club (1985) is conflicts with parents. As mentioned before, all five students seem to have unhealthy relationships with their parents. Diana Baumrind came up with a chart that categorizes parents into four styles, authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and disengaged (Arnett, 2013, p.182). For the students that give information on their parents, specific categories can be given. For Allison, her parents drove off the minute she stepped out of the car, almost running her over. Her parents could be categorized as Authoritarian or Disengaged as the responsiveness level seems to be low. For John Bender, he describes his father as aggressive and physically abusive. His father could fit into the category of Authoritarian or Disengaged although from the details given, he seems to lean more towards Disengaged. Claire’s dad offers to make it up to her after he drops her off for detention and given her demeanor, she seems spoiled so her father could be categorized as permissive. For Andrew, his dad seems to lean towards Authoritative, thought it seems his main concern is not his sons well being but rather his athletic ability. Finally, for Brian, his parents could be categorized as Authoritative, thought little detail is given about them. From John Benders impersonation, they seem this way and from the way Brian reacts, this conclusion can be made. With parenting styles come consequences and lasting effects on children.
Arnett (2013) says that Adolescents with authoritative parents tend to be better off than those with parents in the other three categories with some exceptions. (Arnett, 2013, p.183). This can be reflected in Brian who is very intelligent and driven however on the inside is actually experiencing suicidal thoughts. Arnett (2013) also says that adolescents with parents that are disengaged tend to be impulsive and tend to be more involved in delinquent behavior while adolescents with parents who are permissive tend to be immature and irresponsible (Arnett, 2013, p.183). This can be reflected in John and Claire. John has disengaged parents and is involved in delinquency and is very impulsive while Claire has permissive parents and is more on the immature side when it comes to interactions with John. Parenting styles can affect adolescents in both positive and negative ways, and this is reflected through the characters in The Breakfast Club
(1985). Another connection that The Breakfast Club (1985) draws from adolescence today is sexual activity among adolescents. According to Arnett (2013), 46% of teens with have their first sexual experience during their high school years and the average age of an adolescents first sexual experience is 17 years old (Arnett, 2013, p.255). During the film, John is constantly teasing Claire for being a virgin and she continuously denies it. Finally, after smoking some of John’s marijuana, Claire opens up. Allison begins teasing saying that she’s done everything and would participate in sexual activities for little to nothing in exchange. Upon hearing this, Claire blurts out that she is in fact a virgin but feels constant pressure from her peers to engage in sexual activity. This is not uncommon in American high schools and with 46% of students experiencing sexual intercourse, it was highly likely that Claire was telling the truth about the pressures that she was feeling (Arnett, 2013, p.255). The fourth connection identified between adolescence and The Breakfast Club (1985) is the aspect of cliques and crowds. According to a review of 44 studies on crowds among adolescents, researchers found that five major types of crowds exist, the elites, the athletes, the academics, the deviants and the others (Arnett, 2013, p.223). In The Breakfast Club (1985), there is one member from each of these types of crowds represented. Claire is the elite, Andrew is the athlete, Brian is the academic, John is the deviant and Allison is the nobody. Though not discussed in the film, cliques exist within each of these crowds (Arnett, 2013, p.223). Crowds are cited as helping adolescents find their identity in a large school setting and are not categorized as a group of friends but rather a group of peers who tend to be similar to one another (Arnett, 2013, p.223). In this case, the crowds that each of these students were in allowed little communication between each other and so this Saturday morning detention proved to be an opportunity for them to break the barriers created by these crowds and learn about one another. The fifth connection that exists between The Breakfast Club and Adolescence today is the topic of substance abuse. Arnett (2013) defines substance abuse as the use of any substance that affects your cognitive ability or mood (Arnett, 2013, p.366). This can include alcohol, cigarettes or illegal drugs (Arnett, 2013, p.366). According to a 2011 study, 40% of high school students reported consuming alcohol while 31% reported binge drinking on top of this (Arnett, 2013, p.367). Further more 19% of students reported cigarette use while 23% reported the use of marijuana (Arnett, 2013, p.368). These statistics are reflected in The Breakfast Club (1985) in many instances. Towards the beginning, John Bender lights a cigarette by lighting his shoe on fire. Use of cigarettes according to Arnett is considered substance abuse and therefore falls into this category. Bender is the only one seen smoking during the film and faily accurately describes the statistic that 1 in 5 teens smoked cigarettes. Allison later admits to Andrew that she drinks vodka, she claims that it is her drink of choice. This aspect of the film reflects the study that 41% of high school students consume alcohol. The most overwhelming example of substance abuse in The Breakfast Club (1985) is the fact that halfway through the film, the group of five sit down and smoke marijuana. Marijuana is unique to both alcohol and cigarettes as it is not age restricted, it is just illegal. The use of this illegal drug draws a connection to modern day adolescence and reflects the statistic that 23% of adolescent’s report marijuana use (Arnett, 2013, p.368) In conclusion, it can be determined that The Breakfast Club (1985) paints an accurate picture of what it’s like to be an adolescent in America. Though films often tend to over or under exaggerate experiences of the consumer, The Breakfast Club (1985) is able to show what American adolescence is really like. Through its connections to the personal fable, parental conflicts, sexual activity, cliques and crowds and substance abuse, The Breakfast Club (1985) is able to capture some of the experiences that adolescents have.
The final scene in The Breakfast Club shows all the Characters leaving detention happier than they were when they arrived. After a day of self-discovery and making new friends, the students asked if they would still be friends went school went back on Monday. At first some of them were hesitant, but they all got along in the end. During the final scene, “Don’t You Forget About Me” by Simple Minds plays to set the tone of the scene. Lyrics like "slow change may pull us apart”, “tell me your troubles and doubts”, and “don’t you forget about me” sums up the film and creates a fantastic
The purpose of this paper is to analyze a movie and list five sociological concepts outlined in our textbook, Sociology A Down-To-Earth Approach, 6th edition by James M. Henslin, which was published by Pearson Education, Inc in 2015, 2013, and 2011. I have chosen the movie, “The Breakfast Club.” This is a 1985 movie directed by John Hughes. It is about five high school students that have detention on a Saturday for nine hours. The five students are played by, Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, Ally Sheedy, and Anthony Michael Hall. These five students are deviant in their own particular ways and have different stereotypes. Eventually the students share personal information about their
The 1985 film, The Breakfast Club, directed by John Hughes shows how a person’s identity can be influenced by conflict he or she has experienced in life. First, John Bender is in the library telling everyone how he got a cigar burn on his arm from his dad. For example, his mother and father don’t treat with the most respect or any respect at all. They call him names and say he can’t do anything right. One day him and his dad got into a really bad argument and his dad burnt him with is cigar that he had. Because his parents treat him that way, he treats everyone he’s around very badly.
In the iconic film, The Breakfast Club, five random high school students must spend their Saturday together in detention. Each teen is in detention for a different reason. The Jock (Andrew), the Princess (Claire), the Brain (Brian), the Basket Case (Allison), and the Criminal (Bender) must put aside their differences to survive their grueling eight-hour detention with their psychotic and rash principal Mr. Vernon. While in detention, they are expected to write about “who they really are” in one thousand words. Throughout the day, their actions reveal their innermost struggle involving their cliques and their home lives. As the movie progresses, we find out the reason each teen is in detention that culminates in a climactic discussion about
Breakfast Club film contained a wide variety of behavior and stereotypes. Each person had their on personality and taste at the beginning of the film. I believe that communication played the biggest part in the movie. It shows the way that people from totally different backgrounds can communicate and even agree on issues. The various types of communication and behaviors within the film will be discussed.
The Breakfast Club points out that certain stereotypes result in greater isolation than others. For instance, Allison is the "basket case" or " weirdo" who sits by herself at lunch. When Allison enters the library for detention, she quickly slouches in the back of the room, sitting alone. Allison 's behavior allows the viewer to perceive her has the social outcast who doesn 't have many friends. In fact, later in the movie, Allison admits she doesn 't have any friends and that she is only in detention because she "had nothing better to do." Allison shows her feeling of isolation by not talking until halfway through the movie. However, when she does talk, she makes up an extravagant lie and explains how she is a compulsive liar. The viewer realizes that Allison is attempting to escape her isolation by drawing attention to herself. Another stereotype that exhibits isolation is the "brain" or nerd, Brian. When the five students are talking about belonging to clubs, Brian quickly jabs in how he is in the physics and the math club. The viewer can see this as Brian wanting to belong with the rest. However, shortly after he says this Claire makes him feel even more isolated by saying that "academic clubs aren 't like social clubs." Brian then has a look of sadness which shows the viewer Brian 's intentions for his
The Breakfast Club is a movie made in nineteen eighty-five, directed by John Hughes. The plot follows five students at Shermer High School, as they attend for Saturday detention on March 24 on nineteen eighty-four. The students are not complete strangers to each other, but the five of them are from completely different cliques or social groups. John Bender “The Criminal” is one of the worst behaved kids in school, does drugs and is always involved in some kind of trouble, Claire Standish “The Princess” is one of the most popular girls in school, all the guys want to date her. Brian Johnson “The Brain” is the typical nerd, he is really smart in school, but has no idea about relationships, parties or drugs. Andy Clark “The Athlete” is a really popular kid in Shermer High, he is the varsity letterman, captain of wrestling team and a ladies man. Finally the last student in the detention is Allison Reynolds “The basket Case” she barely talks to anyone in the school and act really weird when approached.
The movie The Breakfast Club is a perfect example of peer relationships in the adolescent society. It shows the viewer some of the main stereotypes of students in high school you have a jock, a nerd, the weirdo, a rebel, and a prep. Over the course of a Saturday detention the different types of peers learn a lot about one another by hearing what each one has done to get into Saturday detention as well as why they chose to do it.
What can you learn about adolescence by watching five very different teens spend Saturday detention together? With each and everyone of them having their own issues weather it be at home, school, or within themselves. During this stage of life adolescents are seen as rude, disrespectful, and out of control. But why is this? Is it truly all the child’s fault? Teens have to face quite a few issues while growing up. Adolescence is the part of development where children begin push back against authority and try to figure out who they are or who they are going to become. Therefore, we will be looking at adolescent physical changes, their relationships, cognitive changes and the search for identity as depicted in the movie The Breakfast Club (Hughes,1985).
Social Psychology is the study of how we think and relate to other people. These psychologists focused on how the social situation influences others behavior. We see social influences everywhere we go, but might not notice it. Like when watching a movie for fun you do not notice it as much as when you are actually looking for the behaviors, like in the film The Breakfast Club. There are several examples of social psychological behaviors in the film.
In the film The Breakfast Club there are various social psychological theories and concepts that describe the inner selves of the characters. The characters in the film are initially perceived in a certain manner by each other because of knowing the way they behave in school and the type of people and environment they surround themselves with in school. However one detention on a Saturday brings these characters together and throughout the film their true personalities and behaviors start to reveal themselves by means of social psychological theories and concepts. The characters individually and as a group display their personalities through theories and concepts of social psychology. At the very start of the film, one of the concepts displayed is the acceptance type of conformity. The principal assigns the characters (students) to complete a task and because he is a figure of authority, the characters accept having to complete the task by the end of the day without any attempts to alter that. One of the students, Claire Standish, is revealed to display the concept of narcissism, which is unfortunately a dark side of herself. This is evident as Claire claims that she is popular and loved by her fellow schoolmates and seems to care and showcase her rich and beauty too much. She is, as her detention-mates discover, full of herself. In addition this also shows signs of the spotlight effect theory which can relate to Claire in that she believes that her schoolmates look at her and pay so much attention to her appearance add rich, spoiled-like behavior. Another character to show a theory of social psychology is Allison Reynolds. In the film, Allison is a character with an introvert personality, although she also displays strange and...
John Hughes’ 1985 film, The Breakfast Club, gives countless examples of the principles of interpersonal communication. Five high school students: Allison, a weirdo, Brian, a nerd, John, a criminal, Claire, a prom queen, and Andrew, a jock, are forced to spend the day in Saturday detention. By the end of the day, they find that they have more in common than they ever realized.
Despite an inappropriate music-video sequence and a phony up-tempo finale, The Breakfast Club offers a breakthrough portrait of the pain and misunderstanding which result from the social hierarchy created by youth themselves. The lookers and the jocks are popular and can do whatever they want — except relate to those outside their social circle of winners.
While every student in his school carries on with their daily routine, Ferris decides that there is no harm in taking a day of leisure and fun to do whatever he likes. Ferris Bueller’s day defies Appiah’s argument stating “one thing that matters to people across many societies is a certain narrative unity, the ability to tell a story that hangs together” (73). Appiah is arguing in a sense that one’s individual identity should tie in with the rest of society. Though it is agreeable that Ferris’ day is far-fetched spur of the moment, this individual experience of his proves that conformity is not the only way to find one’s identity. Ferris understands the risk of missing school but believes the risk is outweighed by the benefits of exploring the social world in which he can learn first hand what skills and knowledge that a classroom cannot provide him
The Breakfast Club. Dir. John Hughes. A&M Films Channel Production, 1985. Perf. Molly Ringwald, Judd Nelson, Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy, Emilio Esteves. Film.