Education and Educational contexts

BLOC A. Sociological Perspective

2nd Seminar:
Society versus individual

FILM: The Lopster.

Yorgos Lanthimos, the Greek director of The lopster explore social relations and
the arbitrary construction of norms. His first film was Dogtooth (Canino), where
he presents a family isolated from the world. This situation of disconnection
leads to the configuration of a totally different order between the walls of their
house, with different norms and, even language takes altered meanings. Here
you can watch the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuyFxZ5OHIM

The Lopster, his second movie, presents a dystopia, following science fiction
tradition as 1984, G. Orwell) or Brave New World A. Huxley, etc… In this
seminar we will analyze last session’s main topics trough this film. Watch the
film and reflect about the following questions:

- Could you describe the norms of the society that appears in the film?
The society of the film lives in couples. Those who do not have partners enter a
kind of hotel to find a partner. They have forty-five days to achieve that goal
and, in the case, they are not able to do it, they are transformed into animals
they have chosen previously.

On the other hands there are rebels that do not want to be in a relationship and
live in the woods. The people that lives in the hotel go to hunt these the rebels
to end with them.
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In both cases are very extremists and it is a society very inflexible with a lot of
punishments for a very natural things such as fell in love for instance.

- Could you identify the main mechanisms of social control?

The main mechanisms of social control that appear on the film are the
intimidation, by the fact that they are controlled the twenty for hours of the day,
ridiculization too, for instance the servants of the hotel obliges a man that
masturbated himself explain how he masturbated with details in front of
everyone and put his hand on a toaster to burn their fingers as a punishment.

The opprobrium is the main mechanism in this film. One one hand, it’s forbidden
in the hotel show any sign of individualism, in the sense that masturbation is
forbidden and, in this society,, it is impossible to live as an individual.
- As we already know, individuals internalized the socialization process.
Could you indicate the main personality traits of the characters regarding
the society where they live?
The main character is a person that in the start of the movie wants to follow the
rules of the society and find a couple, but when his brother is murdered by her
girlfriend the game change. In that moment, his behavior changes and he now
form part with the people that live in the woods, but he fights again the rules for
his love.

We have the group of the hotel, are very traditional and follow the norms strictly
but on the other hand the rebels are the same but with another ideology.

- When individual break to norms of a society the mechanism of social

control starts working. Which are the norms that they break and what are
the consequences? Could you describe how is a deviant in this society
and why?
For instance, when as I said before on the hotel the norms that are broken is
masturbating, going out for a walk and obviously not being with a partner
and desert. The consequences are humiliation, physical such as burning
their hands, being transformed on a animal and the death.
Education and Educational contexts

On the other hand, the rebels have the same norms but the punishments are
because of showing love or felling in love with others.

In this society a deviant is a person that only needs himself and not being
with a partner.

- What other philosophical reflection Lanthimos tries to approach to the

audience of the film?
The reflection in this movie is that humans need to love, and be loved and
being alone, being an individual without restrictions and punishment. It also
judges the way and the restrictions that our society have on an extreme way.
- There are others films that present dystopic worlds that help us to
understand our society and our behaviors. Could you present other
examples?
One example of these types of movies would be a spanish one called “El
Hoyo” or maybe “The Truman Show”.

I recommend this video to introduce the concept of POWER and how affect to
the organization of society and social order:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_Eutci7ack