Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Which Breakfast Club Character is Oskar?


I recently watched the "bonus features" on The Breakfast Club DVD. This was shortly after I realized I had about an hour to write a blog post and freaked out, so the thoughts of Oskar were still in my mind. Various actors, producers, and screen writers talked about John Hughes's five "stereotypical" characters  in the movie. A few explained how everyone somehow or in someway is able to identify with one of the five teenage characters, which makes the movie such a success.

In many ways, Oskar is in a category all on his own. He's definitely not Molly Ringwald- aka "the princess." I personally don't think he has much in common with Emilio Estevez- "the athlete." That leaves Ally Sheedy ("the basketcase"), Judd Nelson ("the criminal"), and Anthony Michael Hall ("the brain"). In my opinion, I think Oskar identifies with all three of these characters in some way or another. However, I believe Oskar is most like Anthony Michael Hall's character Brian or "the brain." Granted, they have their differences. Brian is an outstanding student (minus the whole "shop class" debacle) and a genuinely kind-hearted character. Oskar, on the other hand, isn't very kind-hearted. However, both characters in their stories represent truth, or at least a version of it.


Brian says,"Dear Mr. Vernon: We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it is we did wrong, but we think you're crazy for making us write an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us as you want to see us: in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain, and an athlete, and a basket case, a princess, and a criminal. Does that answer your question? Sincerely yours, The Breakfast Club."


This letter represents the monumental changes the five characters went through throughout the day. Their prospectives and attitudes have completely changed. More than the others, Brian understands the effects the day had on them and is able to make sense of it. 


Like Brian, Oskar feels and navigates the changes in his life and world throughout WWII. Granted, Oskar is quite delusional. In fact, he's credibility is shattered in the first few sentences of the novel. However, both Brian and Oskar represents "truth" for their prospective stories. 




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