Beast
of the Southern Wild Midterm Exam
COM 220 Intercultural Communication
Dr. Regina Lewis
Student Name: Richard J. Van Dyke
For each question you must reference a term in the text,
define, and explain how this particular term relates to any part of the
question.
- What new idea,
perspective, and/or setting did you learn about from this film?
I
never knew that cultures like the Bathtub existed. After watching the film and doing some
research on my own I discovered that a group of people actually live in that
area. On the “Isle de Jean Charles” a
group of people live in a manner very similar to how the characters in the film
live. After watching this film, participating in class I
think that I have experienced a form of deculturation,
in that I have had to “unlearn” some of my cultural biases, and am now more
able to view these cultures for what they are, and not through my own
preconceived ideas.
- What is the most
impactful or powerful moment in this film to you? What similarities in the
film did you find to your life? Culture?
There were actually two
moments in the film that had me on the edge of my seat. First, when Hushpuppy sets her house on fire,
and then, during the hurricane, when she has the fight with Wink. During the fire Hushpuppy hides in a
cardboard box and I was sure she was not going to make it out alive. Thankfully, Wink finds her in time. During the fight that she and Wink have
during the storm, I was convinced it would end badly with either hushpuppy or
Wink getting injured. That did not come
to pass either.
The similarity I found with
my own life and values was the theme of being willing to do anything to keep a
family together. During my time in the
Air Force, I guided my career and assignments to specifically avoid getting a
posting that would send me overseas or on a long deployment (over a year)
without my family. This would be an
example of danger control. I sought out information, and took a stand to
control what happened to myself, and my family.
- What themes do you
think were most prevalent in Beasts of the Southern Wild? In terms
of a cultural group, what does Hushpuppy represent to you in this film?
The
main theme that resonates with me throughout the film is “change”. The world is trying to impose change on the
people, and culture of the Bathtub, and they are constantly trying to resist
it. This could be easily characterized
as uncertainty avoidance. The
hurricane is coming and Wink does whatever he can to fight it. When they are taken to the shelter all they
can think of is escape. The group of
children walk for miles and days to return to the only home they have ever
known. Through all this upheaval
Hushpuppy is the most defiant of all.
Even though she is only a young child, in some ways she plays the role
of the matriarch. She stands up to Wink
and any adult who gets in the way of her goal to maintain her cultural status
quo.
- Throughout the film,
Hushpuppy listens to different heartbeats. What is the significance of
heartbeats in this film?
The
heartbeats are seen by Hushpuppy as a form of communication. Early in the film she refers to this by
saying that all living things have a heartbeat, and they all speak to one
another in a language she can’t always understand. She believes the animals are saying “they’re
hungry or they have to poop.” I think
this can be related to a type of accommodation,
in that she interprets them as a nonverbal language that all animals engage in.
- What do you think the
aurochs represent in this film? When Hushpuppy finally confronts them,
what does that moment signify? What are the aurochs for your culture?
The
aurochs represent a clash of cultures. They are an extinct animal, and the
culture in the bathtub is on the verge of extinction. They are feared by
Hushpuppy through most of the movie. This is a form of fatalism. Hushpuppy feels
that she has no control over her environment and the things that are happening
to her. At the end though she makes
peace with aurochs. I believe this
alludes her coming to peace with the idea of changes coming to her culture, and
her life.
In my
culture the aurochs could represent the inevitable march of time. The years pass and the culture I grew up in
has changed. Examples are all around us;
music, food, even the landscape.
- How do themes of
independence and community relate in this film? Do the characters lean
more toward one or the other? In what ways are the characters independent
and in what ways are the characters dependent?
I
think that there is a balance between independence and community in the culture
of the Bathtub. The members of the
community are all strong individualists, but as a collective they lean on each
other for moral, economic and other types of support. We can see examples of conformity orientation in the way members of the community share
attitudes, values, and their beliefs. They collectively believe in educating
their children, celebrating holidays together and, treating each other with
respect. You can also see examples of “horizontal self” at work. Status, rank, and position are present in the
culture of the Bathtub but it does not influence how members of the community
treat each other.
- How do you think
Hushpuppy would define family? How do you define family?
I
believe that in a narrow sense Hushpuppy would define her family as herself,
and her father, Wink. However, I also
think that she might define family in broader terms to include other members of
the Bathtub community as well. This
relates strongly to her social identity. The cultural norms that she shares with the
other members of her culture.
I
define family as a group that that (usually) cohabitate and have a shared set
of values. In my home that’s the
traditional model of mother, father, and children, but that model is no longer
the norm, and there is room for all types of families today.
- What is your
impression of Wink as a father figure? What is your impression of Wink and
Hushpuppy’s relationship?
Their
relationship is complicated. There is
love, but also a certain amount of resentment.
Wink seems to resent Hushpuppy’s very existence, while Hushpuppy resents
that Wink can’t be the mother that she desperately wants. My interpretation of
Hushpuppy’s and Wink’s relationship relates to subjective culture. If I
came from the culture of the Bathtub I would likely view their relationship
through the lens of their beliefs and, values and come to very different
conclusions. When seen through the lens of my own culture, Winks parenting
skills, however, could use a little work.
There can be no denying that Wink loves his daughter and Hushpuppy loves
him. It is no surprise to me in the
movie when the government officials take her away from him. He is somewhat complicit in this after he
considers his health problems.
- What is your opinion
of the Bathtub? How are the children of the Bathtub different from the
adults? How are age and gender roles in the Bathtub similar to/different
from those you observe in your own experience?
If you
can overlook the crushing poverty, I think the Bathtub would probably be a
pretty fun place for a kid to grow up.
The residents seem to live life to the fullest. The children are treated as children
concerning education, and showing a certain amount of respect to adults. But they are also given much more autonomy
than children in mainstream American culture.
Because of this autonomy, they are much better able to fend for
themselves when adults are not present.
In terms of cultural relativism,
considering my own biases, I would not be comfortable raising my own children
in that environment. The children (and
adults) face dangers on a daily basis from hygiene issues to the threat of
flooding and hurricanes, to house fires.
Considering all these factors, I am of the opinion that the bad
outweighs the good.
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