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Examples Of Stereotypes In The Breakfast Club

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The Breakfast Club is set in Shermer, Illinois on March 24, 1984. Five high school students from Shermer High School are required to report for detention on a Saturday. The school's principal, Mr. Vernon, who is supervising the detention, gives them an assignment where they are each required to write an essay about how they came to be in detention and “who they think they are.” The students are strangers to one another, each coming from a different social group, however, throughout the day they eventually open up and they begin to realize they are not, in fact, as different as they originally thought. The Breakfast Club is a movie that falls into the Comedy/Drama type of entertainment media. Several examples of social psychology are entertained …show more content…

These stereotypes are conveyed through the clothes they wear and the way they act. The stereotypes also represent how the members of the Breakfast Club see one another in the beginning of the movie. Brian is considered "The Brain" in the Breakfast Club. He follows the stereotype of being a typical "nerd". He wears high-waisted jeans and a too-small sweatshirt. Brian wears practical clothing that is not seen as trendy in the high school which only solidifies his dorky image. Claire is seen as "The Princess" of the Breakfast Club. She conforms to the stereotype of a "prom queen/prep" by wearing various shades of pink, a skirt, earrings, and bangle bracelets. Because of her high social standing, she feels that she must keep up with the trends to remain popular in the eyes of her social group and the rest of the school. Bender is considered "The Criminal" of the Breakfast Club; He follows the stereotype of a "troublemaker." Bender wears ripped jeans, work boots, a thermal shirt, a plaid over-shirt, and a torn flannel. His layers of disheveled clothing suit his tough, rebellious attitude. Bender's personality could be described as aggressive and disrespectful towards figures of authority, which can be seen in the way he treats Mr. Vernon, the principal. Allison is portrayed as "The Basket Case" of the Breakfast Club. She follows the stereotype of a "weirdo" by wearing …show more content…

In high school, everyone is vulnerable and desperate to figure out who they are. As a consequence, people typically live off the labels put upon them by others. When suddenly they're not that unique 13-year-old kid their parents told them they were; they're a loser, they're a jock, they're a brain, they're a princess and they're a basket case. In this movie, they've come to a point where they don't know themselves as anything other than their label, which they had no choice in. These labels were chosen for them based on their looks, background and family. For example, Claire is pretty and rich and that is what everyone has told her so what else is she supposed to believe? Because of this, she’s always going to think she is supposed to hang out with the pretty, popular girls, because that’s who society has told her she is. The same can be said for the rest of the characters, Bender especially. While growing up, his own parents told him that he was never worth anything. Because of this, when he went to school and was faced with dealing with other adults, he

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