Strain Theory In The Film 'The Pursuit Of Happiness'

After watching the movie “The Pursuit of Happiness”, that strain theory fits some of the main themes in the movie. To explain, the general definition of strain theory is the theory that within society there are social structures that pressure it’s citizens to commit criminal activity. In other words it is describing how people can be pushed over the edge by society’s rules and regulation that they tend to forget the other important things, such as their own happiness. Continuously struggling on this path could cause a good amount of people to snap, thus causing them to commit a crime not out of pleasure but out of need. From the beginning of the movie we see Chris Garner and his family always struggling to make to ends meet. From selling …show more content…
Probably the most comical of them was the Taxi Driver scene. This could be a good example of strain theory. We see that Chris is trying desperately to impress one of the corporate managers of the firm to get him a position into the internship. So he takes a taxi ride with him in order to do so. Though it did not exactly work out well, the man leaves Chris to pay for the cab fare while the meter is still running. Chris, knowing he didn’t have enough money to pay, decided to make run for it. He was put into a position where he had little choice, but if wanted the job he had to go the extra mile to make an impression and to follow up on the position. Second example is when Chris Garner found the Homeless man that stole his scanner and proceeded to pursue him. After crossing the street to give chase only to get hit by a car. Despite this Chris Garner still lipped away instead of waiting for the police because he had to work and was determined to see it through. 3rd example and final example is when Chris and his soon were evicted and were forced to sleep in a bathroom. This scene really shows how deep the struggle goes as Chris has to pretend to the scanner is a time machine to his son but inside is going through and intense struggling on finding proper shelter.

In conclusion Strain Theory definitely applies to the movie “The Pursuit of Happiness”.

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Strain Theory In The Film 'The Pursuit Of Happiness'

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