The film ‘Forrest Gump' follows the life of a man with the same name as the film's title. Gump, played by Tom Hanks, experiences several difficulties in life, but he never lets them get in the way of his happiness. He perseveres despite wearing leg braces, having a low IQ, and even being shot at, by believing that good things will happen and going on to continue pursuing his dreams.
He was present at some of the most pivotal events in the second half of the twentieth century—rubbing shoulders with influential and historical figures such as John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, John Lennon, and even Elvis Presley—thanks to his ability to turn each setback into something positive. Many describe the film as a celebration of the human spirit, told through the eyes of a young man with wide eyes.
But the movie is not without its critics. Simply by chugging along, participating in a country that dictates his every move, this no-nothing white man becomes a war hero and a wealthy man. He has no understanding of racism or the complexities of the Vietnam War he fought in, and the film depicts political activism and hippy culture as giant cartoons beyond Forrest's comprehension - while presenting his apolitical stance as the pinnacle of virtue. Even more of note is that Gump is also a character born in the Deep South, the grandson of a Ku Klux Klansman, and raised in a segregated and bigoted environment. Though the movie celebrates his colourblind stance, in hindsight, "Forrest Gump" whitewashes and trivializes American history at every turn.
This is fascinating to think about when you consider the feel-good lessons that the movie is thought to espouse:
Gump was never afraid to try new things. Gump was always optimistic. Gump channeled pain into productivity. Gump always treated everyone the same.
These ideals of courage, optimism, growth, and charging on ahead regardless of what’s happened—while not inherently a bad thing—when placed in the utopian, anti-political, and colourblind world of Gump, become eerily reminiscent of the toxic self-help culture around us today.
While some popular negative effects of self-help include addiction to self-help content, inability to cope with changes to one's productive or ‘perfect’ daily routines, and hustle culture, the one feature that’s also present in the film Forrest Gump is the absence of intersectionality.
Intersectionality is the recognition that everyone has their own unique experiences of oppression and discrimination, and that everything and anything that can marginalize people – gender, race, class, sexual orientation, physical ability, and so on – must be taken into account. If we were to look at self-help from an intersectional lens, it instantly becomes clear that not all people are able to focus on self-improvement - be it economically, intellectually, or emotionally.
Is it easier to reach your financial goals if you’re a woman who’s paid less than your male counterpart? Is it easier to get the academic support you need to increase your grades and get into a good university, if the community you live in and the public school you go to are underfunded, compared to someone else who has access to private tutors and counsellors?
This list can go on with intersectionality applied to every facet of our life.
In the movie, Forrest Gump is hailed as an example of perseverance regardless of whatever shortcomings you face. But was he truly at a disadvantage? The most common obstacle that people say he had was himself. Yes, Gump had an intellectual disability, no doubt about that, but disability is a spectrum and the choices made in creating Gump’s character point to a very narrow view of what disabilities might be accepted and what can't be accepted.
Art Blaser wrote in a 1995 article for The Los Angeles Times that, “Gump fits Hollywood standards because he is a neat, young, straight, white American male. He controls his saliva, drinks cola and, except at the opportune time and for a very understandable reason, his urine and bowels. In contrast, real disabled people may be messy, of any age, race or gender and may be addicted to drugs or alcohol. Also unlike real disabled people, who are easily depressed in a world that will not understand them, Gump is always happy.”
Would Gump have succeeded in life if he did not fit societal standards of acceptable disability?
Comments