摘 要

《阿甘正传》是一部上映于1994年的美国剧情片，也是一部获得广泛认可的经典之作，改编自温斯顿·格鲁姆1986年的同名小说。但是这部电影与温斯顿·格鲁姆的小说还是有很大的不同，包括阿甘的性格和一些被描绘的历史事件等等。影片将阿甘的成长与美国二十世纪下半叶发生的重大历史事件巧妙地结合起来，讲述了一个传奇般的故事，也向人们展示了当代美国人的价值观，即美国精神。有观众认为阿甘的成功源于幸运，也有人认为阿甘是大智若愚，但所有的观众都会被影片中阿甘的执着、简单深深打动。通过汤姆汉克斯卓越的表演，影片给我们展现了一套成功的哲学，真正的大智慧。本论文结合电影《阿甘正传》中不同的社会时期和背景，分析“阿甘”这一人物的自我成长和美国主义。

关键词：《阿甘正传》；自我成长； 美国精神

Contents

1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………....1

2. Demonstration………………………………………………………………………2

2.1. In Childhood…………………………………………………………….……......2

2.1.1 Social background.................................................................................................2

2.1.2 Growth path: simplicity but extraordinariness……………………………..……3

2.2. In Youth age…………………………………………………………………....…4

2.2.1. Social background……………………….…………………………………...…4

2.2.2. Growth path: persistence……………………………………..…………………5

2.3. In Adulthood………………………………………………….………………......6

2.3.1. Social background……………………………………………………..…….….6

2.3.2. Growth path: Loyalty and Open-mindedness ………………………………….7

3. Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………..8

Works Cited…………………………………………………………………..............10

Bibliography………………………………………………………………….............10

An Analysis of Forrest Gump’s Growth in the Film ---Forrest Gump

1. Introduction

In the past 100 years, the global communication and information industry have rapidly developed. Along with the continuous progress of science and technology, mankind has been brought into the information society. Media plays an increasingly important role in the information age. Newspapers, magazines, TV and movies are the more advanced forms of information communication. The movie is perhaps the most influential medium. It seems like a micro world, showing different social values and ideas.

In American movies, the "American dream" and "optimism" is often the subject of concern. So what is the American dream on earth? The representative movie about the American dream is Forrest Gump. Forrest Gump (1994) was directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Tom Hanks as a "stupid movie" (anti-intellectual film). The movie was a huge success in 1995, the 67th annual Academy Awards race, Forrest Gump made its 13 nominations, won the best picture, the best actor, the best director, the best adapted screenplay, the best editing and the best visual effect six awards, represented the first place in the national top 10 box office film, and finished fourth in the list of the highest-grossing film ever. What’s more, "the film earned $29.85 billion at the domestic box office in that year, and 65.7 million worldwide, conquering the world's fans with its extraordinary artistic charm and strong box office. Through the cultural interpretation of this film, readers can understand the native American culture more deeply. "(张静 92)

The film was adapted from the novel of the same name by American writer Winston groom published in 1986. It depicted the mentally retarded boy Forrest Gump, finally got the blessing of the God, and created miracles in many fields. While describing the personal experience, it was also skilfully linked with the famous American characters and events. Although it expresses the pursuit of love, friendship and even life, the overall tone of the film is not deep. On the contrary, it always appears witty banter and imagination and everywhere expresses a kind of American humour and open-minded. The film has successfully carried over 30 years of historical and cultural events throughout the experience of an honest and lovely hero, Forrest Gump and allows people to re-examine the history of young American. It is this distinctly American film that is considered a classic of contemporary American culture. Unlike most of the Hollywood business films that pursue quirkiness and excitement, the film reflects every aspect of American society and is memorable to the audience.

Gump is the best interpreter of Americanism and his self-growth is also the intuitive manifestation of American spirit. Gump was not easy to walk in his childhood, and he needed to wear an orthopaedic clamp to walk normally. In addition, his IQ is only 75, below the standard of 80. Therefore he was bullied by other children as a child and was called "a local idiot" by local residents. He was often asked: "Are you stupid or something?" He replied:" Stupid is as stupid does." However, Gump with a lower intelligence than the average person obtained the achievement that ordinary people cannot imagine through the persistence of "running" belief". As Gump's mother said:" Miracles happen every day." Forrest Gump's success has revived the American dream, which is one of the reasons for this success.