The Theme Of Freedom In The Movie Rebel Without A Cause?

As young adults we crave independence. We get tired of our parents telling us what to do, and always look forward to the day when we no longer have to rely on them. We want our freedom, but we never stop to think what life would be like if we had it. In the 1955 film, Rebel Without a Cause, we see a character named Plato living with that freedom. Not by choice, but by his neglectful parents. He gives us a taste of how life without parental control can be damaging to one’s self being, and the absence of parental love and authority can have us seeking the attention we desire in unethical ways. In this case, it causes insecurities, disturbs his mental state, and makes him delusional. It is quite clear from the beginning that Plato’s abandonment

His delusions are expressed through his relationship with his friends Judy and, most importantly, Jim. Plato’s deprivation of love and attention is immediately noticed after he “is offered Jim 's dark brown jacket to keep warm, but refuses it,” (Dirks). Jim overhears the maid point out that Plato is shivering and without hesitation makes an attempt to comfort him. Stunned by Jim’s kind and caring gesture; “the paternal act of kindness is typically rejected by the hurt boy,” Dirks continues. The attention he received from a male figure spoke to him on a deep level. “Hey, you want to come home with me? I mean, there 's nobody home at my house, and heck, I 'm not tired. Are you? See, I don 't have too many people I can talk to... If you want to come, we could talk, and in the morning we could have breakfast like my dad used to. Gee, if only you could have been my dad,” a desperate Plato asks. Throughout the film we see Plato’s feelings toward Jim progress from friend to family like love. Plato makes his feelings clear to both Judy and Jim in many ways. One way he does this is by lying about his family. For example, when the three friends run off to a mansion they have some time to talk among themselves. Jim and Judy ask him questions about his life. Plato responds by falsely informing them that he “used to lie in my crib at night and I 'd listen to them fight” and that his

We all have those moments when we wish we didn’t have them. Deep inside us, we know that the absence of our parents leads to a depressing, unfulfilling life. I don’t believe Plato to be a horrible person. If his parents would have made time for their only son, he would have had a sense of self. He wouldn’t have lived a chaotic life looking for love to fill that empty hole in his heart. He wasn’t a bad boy he was just looking for a hand to hold in the lonely world he lived in. As we can see, it affected Plato’s state of mind and his ability to “comprehend, much less maintain, any form of a healthy relationship,” as Danny Weitzman says. The lack of attention affects everyone differently, some learn to cope with it and others find ways to regain it. The lesson of the film here is that parents need to invest more time in their children. Children and teens act out in need of attention and sometimes it can be difficult to keep up with hormonal teens; but we need to learn how to read our children. Time and devotion are keys to learning more about one another and having a happy family. Rebel Without A Cause explains to us the importance of family, communication, and presence. It helps us understand that life without the love of family can place us in a desperate and confusing world; somewhere no one should be a part