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Analytical Essay On American Beauty

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Analytical Essay On American Beauty
American Beauty Analysis
The film American Beauty focuses on a man named Lester Burnham and how his midlife crisis is affecting him, as well as the people involved in his life. Lester is in a horribly strained marriage with his wife, Carolyn, and has lost total connection with his daughter, Jane. His boss views him as completely useless in the workplace, and wants Lester to quit. Indignant by his wretched life, Lester decides to create changes in him. The viewer will watch Lester’s mundane personality transform into an electrifying aura, and the shocking troubles that come along with his new found outlook on life.
Lester is a forty two year old man who lives in a suburban neighborhood with his family. From the outside, he looks like has a very happy life. He seems to make a good amount of money, lives in a nice home, and has a happy family. Behind closed doors, Lester is terribly unhappy and bored with his life. Every day is quite distinctive in Lester’s life, but still fairly similar. He goes to work and comes home to have dinner with Carolyn and Jane who detest him the most. Each dinner ends the same, with harsh attacks towards Lester, which make him feel even worse …show more content…
Self-monitoring is a personality trait that refers to an ability to regulate behavior to accommodate to social situations. In one particular scene, Angela flirts with Lester by gently brushing her hand against his arm while grabbing a root beer from the fridge. This simple touch triggers Lester to have a fantasy of intimately kissing Angela, while he is sipping on his soda. Jane and Carolyn then appear in the kitchen, where Jane asks if Angela could spend the night. Since Lester is having a sexual fantasy at an inappropriate time, this catches Lester completely off guard and he spits out his soda. Carolyn, Jane, and Angela stare at him and his reaction creates an awkward
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