Class Portrayal in Good Will Hunting

After watching the movie Good Will Hunting, a few thoughts immediately come to mind. The movie emphasizes the distinction between the working class and the educated upper-middle class. The protagonist, Will, belongs to the working class. He spends his days working first as a janitor and later in demolition. In the evenings, he goes to bars and hangs out with his close friends. The first thing that stood out to me in the depiction of Will and his working class buddies, is just how easily their dialogue flows. Sure, it is crude and filled with slang, but they speak it well. There is a kind of call and response, where someone says something and the others seem to know exactly what to say in response. There is a comfortability within class that enables this kind of flowing conversation. 

Will fits in so well with his working class friends, and is fully a part of that particular society. At the same, however, his genius seems to pull him away from those he knows best. He has a gift for mathematics and is extremely intelligence. He is destined to leave behind the working class he has always been a part of and likely find himself among the educated upper-middle class. The film does a good job at juxtaposing Will's vulgarity and crude sense of humor even in those situations where he is surrounded by those of the educated upper-middle class. Throughout the film, Will resists those pushing him towards a different place in society. 

Will and his friends in Good Will Hunting

Will just wants to be with his friends, go to the bar, work an honest job, and watch baseball games. Is that such a bad thing to want? Not exactly, but the grueling labor, low wages, poverty, violence, and crime that are constant in the lives of Will and his friends is less than ideal. That being said, how can someone change their position in society? How can someone fit in with a group that they have never been a part of and that differs from themself in so many ways? It is likely in Will's case that he will never "fit it" with the educated upper-middle class, and honestly, I think that's a good thing. He should not be expected to conform to a new class. Sure he could clean up his language, work a better paying job, and avoid crime, but he does not need to change his personality or forget his working class background. 

All of this leads me to consider my own place in society. I have always been a part of the middle class. This is the class I find myself most comfortable with. In serving a mission, working various jobs, and going to school I have had many interactions with those belonging to different classes in society. I can honestly say it is hard for me to connect with or relate to individuals in the working class or in the wealthy class. On both sides, I find myself feeling out of place and often uncomfortable. This is not to say that I have not at times found myself working well with these individuals, or even developing friendships with them, but there are differences that can make it hard to bridge the gap between classes. My own experience also highlights how hard it can be culturally to shift from one class to another.

The cultures of the working class, middle class, and the wealthy are very different. They each come with their own vocabulary, societal expectations, ways of interacting. Like all cultures, there is good and bad to be found in each of these. The film Good Will Hunting does a good job of portraying these cultural differences between class and raising questions about one's place in society.