Rebel Without A Cause
Omar Gomez
Jim Stark Traits
Jim is reckless, romantic, and frustrated. He is reckless because he doesn't back down from anything whether it be the knife fight or the chickie run. He is also a romantic because he falls in love with Judy. Jim falls in love with her even though she's mean to him at first. He is also frustrated. He is frustrated that his dad lets his mother make all of the decisions.
Problems.
Jims' problems are caused because of his parents. They are constantly fighting and Jim's mom makes all the decision which really bothers Jim and that is why he doesn't respect his dad. In jail, he even screams, "You're tearing me apart!" when his parents are fighting. He is afraid of turning out like his father and that is why he does the chickie run and the knife fight.
Rebel Without A Cause - emasculated Dad
Theme
I think that the theme of the movie is that teenagers want structure and a family that's close. In the movie all the rebels act out because of their family or lack of family. Plato acts out because he doesn't have parents and that is why he kills the puppies. He even says to Jim that its too bad that he isn't his dad. Judy acts out because her dad is mean to her, calls her names, and hit her. She just wants to belong to something and that is why she hangs out with that group of kids. Jim is afraid of turning into his father and that is why he is so content on proving that he is not a chicken.
The Mansion
The Mansion symbolizes the thing that the rebels long for. They only want a family, happiness, and closeness. When they were at the mansion, they pretended that they were a family. They are happy and laughing. That's all they really want.
Why doesn't Jim back down from anything?
Jim doesn't back down from anything because he wants to prove he is a man and doesn't want to turn out like his father, who he doesn't respect and pushes around because his wife controls him. This is why JIm does the knife fight and chickie run.
You're tearing me apart!
Changes
Jim does change throughout the movie. At first he is introduced in the movie with him being drunk and at the end he is seen helping Plato. He yells at his dad and even pushes his dad at one point. He learns that being a man isn't about doing chickie runs or knife fights. He falls in love with Judy and takes Plato under his wing. At the end him and his dad embrace and his dad says he'll be a man for him.