THE AMERICAN HEGEMONY THROUGH FORREST GUMP FILM

The film entitled Forrest Gump covers the last 30s-35s years of American History: Politics, Culture, Society, Science, and Technology...Different details can be seen through the figures of U.S. presidents. Elvis Presley was an American society symbol at Eisenhowers time; people wanted to be like him (its anecdotal how Forrest Gump in his particular dancing influenced Elvis). At that time, Afro-American racial integration at universities had been carried out. U.S. was a country that wanted to be seen as a free nation: Freedom of Speech, Expression, and Press... With Kennedy as president, U.S. image as a modern country was founded: Liberty had to be shown, for instance Playboy magazine in the film. When Kennedy was assassinated and Johnson replaced him as the new president, the American intervention at Vietnam War started. This war implied the first American failure in a war: victims, problems that arose, American soldiers werent welcomed as heroes...anyway, this war wasnt approved by American society. As a reaction of that, mass meetings against the war sprung up (March on Washington). Towards the end of the 60s the Hippy movement appeared. They preached a philosophy of Peace and Love. They wore simple clothes, blue jeans and open sandals, and grew their hair very long. Hippies lived together in communities, sharing their belongings. They smoked opium, marijuana, and took drugs such as LSD. This was their protest against the materialism of the 60s and also against the increasing military involvement of U.S. in Vietnam. Another important movement arose: Black Power. They tried to express a new racial consciousness among blacks in the late 60s. The Civil Right Act ends discrimination (on grounds of gender and race) in all public institutions. With Nixon as president, the mass media power became more noticeable; TV became strong and a great technological breakthrough took place: the man on the moon. However, the Watergate Scandal forced Nixon to resign in order to avoid impeachment. John Lennon appears in the film; and in the same way as in Elvis Presley, Forrest Gump without noticing it, influenced Lennon in his song Imagine. Forrest Gump seems to be
1

an inspirer of celebrities. Ford is the new president in the 70s. The Disco movement started: Saturday night fever, drugs as heroine, cocaine...began to influence in American people. The Computer Science revolution with Apple company took place. New American symbols like Nike trademark are shown on the film. With Carter as president, the film tries to portray a society searching for new ideals to fight for, for instance, when Forrest Gump is running, people believe he is doing it for an ideal. Other American symbols appeared: Shit happens slogan in stickers, the Smileys... With Reagan as president new technological and medical advances happened: the space shuttle; the use of titanium (for instance, Lieutenant Dan Taylors leg), AIDS as an unknown disease is discovered in the 80s and a fight against it started. Racial integration is carried out. In the film, for instance the Vietnamese woman with Lieutenant Dan Taylor. During his presidency, Reagan achieved American people could recover their reliance on America.

A summary chart is given here to show the different details appearing in the film:

POLITICS
Wallace (governor against racial integration) J.F. Kennedy (assassinated) R. Kennedy (his brother, assassinated too) L. Johnson (Vietnam War) R. Nixon (Watergate scandal)

CULTURE & SOCIETY

- Elvis Presley Marilyn Monroe (Kennedys love affair) - Playboy Magazine - Hippy movement (Love and Peace) - Mass meetings (Vietnam War) - Black Power - John Lennon - Late-Night shows - Disco movement AIDS -

TECHNOLOGICAL & SCIENTIFIC ADVANCES

Space exploration

Man on the Moon

G. Ford J. Carter R. Reagan

- Computer Science revolution (Apple Computer) - Space-shuttle - Medical advances