Pleasantville discussion questions and answers

FIRST NAME LAST NAME

Student ID: 1234567

ICPH 302 - W03.

LEGACY OF SOCRATES

Pleasantville Assignment Test 1

February 13, 2018

Professor: Paul F Tagliaferri

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Question 1……………………………………………………………………………...Page 3

Question 2……………………………………………………………………………...Page 4

Question 3……………………………………………………………………………...Page 5

Question 4……………………………………………………………………………...Page 6

Question 5……………………………………………………………………………...Page 7

Question 6……………………………………………………………………………...Page 9

Question 7……………………………………………………………………………...Page 10

Question 8……………………………………………………………………………...Page 11

Question 9……………………………………………………………………………...Page 12

Question 10……………………………………………………………………………Page 13

Question 11……………………………………………………………………………Page 15

Question 1: WHO DOES BUDD REPRESENT IN THIS STORY?

Budd is a representation of Socrates in Pleasantville. The main reason for drawing this conclusion is that in ancient Athens, Socrates stood for principles that were not favored by society, which ultimately led to his death. In Pleasantville, Budd also stood for something, which was of course against the ideals of society. The norm in the film was for citizens to live a “perfect” life, where everything flowed smoothly. In a way, this contained the citizens and restricted them from living life differently and administering any type of change they preferred. Things like art and literature were obsolete in this society, which kept the truth hidden. Budd, much like Socrates, who stood for something different, encouraged the citizens to open up and separate from their ordinary daily life. He introduced art and literature, which wasn’t allowed previously. Similarly, many of Socrates teachings were prohibited in his time and were said to have been corrupting the youth. In this way Budd’s character is very symbolic of Socrates. Budd proliferated change throughout Pleasantville. Similar to Socrates, Budd also stood for himself in the courtroom. However, Budd was successful in trial.

Question 2: SHOULD HE HAVE BEEN PUT ON TRIAL FOR CORRUPTING YOUTH or SHOULD HIS SISTER?

Personally, I think Budd’s sister, Jennifer, should have been put on trial for corrupting the youth. She was the start of all the change that Pleasantville underwent. After she had sex with Skip, Skip noticed the red rose, the first instance where we see color. This led to many couples going to lover’s lane and having sex. Jennifer even had to explain what sex was to her mother, showing us that sex was an unfamiliar topic of discussion in Pleasantville. Jennifer was the source of change and eventually Budd was convinced that Pleasantville could really benefit from this change. Jennifer having sex with Skip was the first move that differed from the normal life in Pleasantville. It was the catalyst to many later changes to come. Jennifer also introduced, to her mother, how to pleasure herself. Additionally, Jennifer introduced the word “cool” to her friend. This was revolutionary in changing how the citizens conversed. In the beginning of the film, Budd was resistant to changes and even tried to convince Jennifer to let the people be and allow them to live their routine lives. In summation, Jennifer should have been put on trial instead of Budd because it was really her who caused all the change. If it weren’t for her, Budd wouldn’t have even pursued any change in Pleasantville.

Question 3: COMPARE PLEASANTVILLE TO ANCIENT ATHENS IN THE TIME OF SOCRATES.

In this film, Pleasantville was portrayed as an idealistic society where everything was picture-perfect. Everyday everything was essentially the same. The weather was always sunny, basketball players never missed a shot and people were always smiling. There was no such thing as change. Similarly, Athens, in the time of Socrates, was considered an idealistic society as well. It had a strong military, great art and an extraordinary system of government for the time. Citizens had equal political rights, freedom of speech, and the opportunity to participate in politics. This political system represented democracy. Both Pleasantville and Athens were societies that were considered utopian. In the Golden Age of Athens, everything was flourishing, from art to philosophy to literature. During this period the Parthenon was built. Everything seemed to be flowing smoothly in both Athens and Pleasantville.

Question 4: IDENTIFY AND EXPLAIN WHERE YOU FOUND DIFFERENCES AND SIMILARITIES IN EACH STORY?

Both Pleasantville and Athens, being considered idealistic societies, its quite straightforward to point some of the similarities. However, there are also many differences that can be shown as well. One huge similarity between the 2 societies is how the people are portrayed. In Pleasantville, the characters were all shown to be very happy and blissful with their daily lives. They would all be extremely pleased with their black and white daily routines. In Athens, it can be inferred that the citizens were content with their lives as well. In a period of prosperity, it was said that all citizens were given equal treatment and equal opportunity. One main difference between the two societies is that Athens was known for its great art, architecture and literature, while Pleasantville didn’t allow for literature or art to be shown. It seemed like creativity wasn’t allowed in Pleasantville. This is a huge difference; individuality wasn’t prevalent in Pleasantville, while in Athens it was known that there were different artists, philosophers and writers who created their own unique works. Both societies were portrayed to be perfectionistic, but how each society attained this status were completely different.

Question 5: AFTER WATCHING THE FULL MOVIE, IF YOU WERE SOCRATES, HOW WOULD YOU HELP YOUR FELLOW CITIZENS FIND KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM IN THEIR LIFE?

If I were Socrates, I would initiate change similar to how Budd did in the film. To help my fellow citizens find knowledge and wisdom in their life, you have to first expose them to different sources of knowledge and spike their curiosity. Budd did this by exposing Bill to art and also by exposing all the students to literature. Once a person is first exposed to something, their curiosity grows in that area. The Socratic method of teaching dealt with asking questions to the students rather than just spoon feeding answers. If a student asked a question, Socrates responded with another question. This draws the student into the discussion further, allowing them to explore their own curiosity and exposing them to much more rather than by just giving them an answer and ending the discussion. For example, if a fellow citizen asked me a question pertaining to art, I would answer him/her with a specific question, forcing him/ her to research and find the answer to both the question on his/ her own. This is how citizens would effectively gain the most knowledge and insight. In Pleasantville, Budd simply presented Bill with the book on art. It was Bill who really delved into art and learned more about it and eventually applied his knowledge into his own creations. This was instrumental in the film. Curiosity began to rise, leading to everyone changing from black and white to color.

Question 6: WHAT IS THE SOUL?

The soul is simply one’s spirit. According to Socrates, the soul is considered the essence of a person. It is who we are. It determines our being. Socrates stated that even after we die, our soul lives on and is continuously reborn in different physical bodies. Many different religions tend to interpret the meaning and existence of the soul differently. A common theme seems to be that the soul is something that is immortal. The Ancient Greeks believed that the soul had 3 parts.

One part functioned as a:

The second part was a:

Lastly, The third part of the SOUL was :

Question 7: DID THE PEOPLE OF PLEASANTVILLE NOT HAVE A SOUL BEFORE BUDD?

Before Budd, the people of Pleasantville did have a soul. Every human has a soul. Budd just helped in bringing it out. The people of Pleasantville were so used to living a certain way. Since birth, these citizens only knew of one way to live, which was deemed perfect.