“Rocky”, a hit movie that inspired people all throughout the nation is a hope story about rising through the social classes to achieve the American dream. This is a story of a not so common street fighter who through the face of adversity rises to stardom. Rocky, a uneducated single man is muscle for one of Philadelphia’s loan sharks. Also being a amateur boxer who has the reputation to take anything and keep coming gets his chance when a professional boxer gives him the chance to fight in a championship bout. Against his better instincts Rocky agrees and pushes his body, mind and soul to the breaking point just to make more out of his life than a punchy enforcer. In the end Rocky rises up and is noticed as somewhat more than just a bum who fights which shows that though it is extremely hard one can move through the social classes and change how they are seen.
This relates to what we discussed in class and to chapter 7 in Loewen’s book “Lies my teacher told me”. In the article Loewen writes about how people are not inherently stupid, they know about social class and the problems and advantages with each one. People know that it is extremely difficult to get into a higher social class and that it may sometimes just seem impossible. In the movie the main character was able to go against the odds and by sheer luck receive the ability cast into the light of the upper class. Now what he did when standing in the spotlight was what made him a hero. Unlike many people who will freeze or run when confronted with a challenge the star took his opportunity and faced what he needed to in order to get where he wanted to go. One chance, that’s all he got, in the society we live in today there are not many times when you have a chance to jump up the class ladder, one must consistently fight tooth and nail through it every day for most of their lives which is the reason it is so rare. The desire to be important and to move from nothing to greatness is the dream and desire of just about everyone. Unfortunately it is not that hard to move down the social ladder, anything from marrying below your class to mismanaging your finances could plant you in the lower class which has happened to many people in this country. Lately many people have been losing their homes and savings from the unsteadiness of our economy which is making it increasingly more difficult to move up the ladder. Rocky showed that through blood, sweat and tears one can achieve their dream but it’s not easy and comes with pain.
The movie was a great story of a hero and his triumph through the face of society’s hold on him. The theory is very good, that a man may make it to where he desires to go but not without the sacrifice that comes along with it.