In A Pervert’s Guide to Idealogy, Žižek supports a modernist viewpoint that includes normative dominant ideologies such as master narratives of history, culture, national identity, the nuclear family, realism, structure, the pursuit of success, and the attainment of wealth, mass culture, broadcast media, and the dichotomy of high and low culture. The film American Beauty, critiques the modernist viewpoint and displays the collapse of what is “normal” within monotonous suburban society (simulated world). The film utilizes characters that fall into modernists, postmodernists, and neutral categories. They constantly interact with each other and affect each others lives, in both a positive and negative way, using their own ideology in order to support their choices. In the film American Beauty, a specific modernist ideology that is challenged is the nuclear family. The Burnham family which consist of Lester, Carolyn, and Jane represents the collapse of the nuclear family in more ways than one. Their relationship displays the fragility of the family structure. In order to prove my point I will use Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) as an example.
Lester represents a postmodernist, and some may argue that he goes from being a modernist to becoming a postmodernist as the movie progresses. I believe that Lester has always been a postmodernist who displays modernists attributes in public due to a sense of obligation (metatheatricality). This is why he has depression, a mid-life crisis, and begins to use drugs. This signifies a conflicting identity which is a dominantly postmodernist attribute. Lester challenges the structure the nuclear family. I believe that he is merely a physical and visual depiction used in order to portray the Burnhams as a nuclear family. He displays selfish behavior, irresponsibility, and inappropriate desires.
Lester is emotionally, and socially unavailable to both his wife and daughter. He is physically unavailable to his wife, forcing her to seek physical gratification through means of an affair. His daughter needs Ricky in her life in order to give a her a sense of confidence that her Father was not able to provide. Lester also regresses to a state of a teenager in order to cope with his dissatisfaction with his own life. Lastly he begins buying weed from Ricky who is teenager and quits his job, that helps to support his family financially, in order to work at a fast food restaurant. These are all very selfish and self-serving acts.
Lester is also very irresponsible. For some reason his feelings, wants, and desire become more important than the well-being of his family. We all struggle with modern and postmodern attributes in the way we regard family. While I don’t totally agree with Carolyn’s “act” in order to portray success at all times, I think that as people who are part of a family, we are responsible to conduct ourselves in a certain way. Member of families represent each other, and out of respect must work together in order to attain goals, maintain a strong foundation within the family structure, and maintain healthy family relationships. Lester goes from a job in the media to a fast food restaurant, when his wife has a job that relies on her image, and her daughter is struggling with her image. This puts both Carolyn and Jane is an odd place socially, when their reputation/image is what is what their survival depends on.
In addition to being selfish and irresponsible, Lester has very inappropriate lustful fantasies towards a sixteen year old girl. Lester clearly demonstrates Žižek’s idea that, “Cinema is the ultimate pervert art. It doesn’t give you what you desire – but tells you how [what] to desire.” Additionally Žižek explains that fantasies are easy ways to cope with life, rather than confronting reality. Lester has daydreams of his teenage daughter’s friend Angela, where she is naked and covered by rose petals that continue to rain down on her. The rose petals (saturated image) act as a motive that reappears every time he begins to fantasize about Angela. Lester’s daydreams begin to distract and influence his everyday life (hyperreality). He begins to work out in order to make himself appear more attractive, hoping to make his fantasy a reality. Lester has a sixteen year old daughter and does not consider how he would feel if an older man felt the same way about his her. This situation represents manifestation of desire, chase, and the inability to achieve the dream. It also shows Lester as a poor example of the Father role within a nuclear family.
Amanda L. Thomas 
An interesting post. I really like your use of modernism and post-modernism as a way to summarize these characters traits as I feel those are quite fitting terms when it comes to the discussion of this film. The only thing I would disagree with is the suggestion that Lester somehow becomes less responsible once his transition begins as I would suggest his sense of responsibility instead shift. Rather than attempt to be completely responsible for his family as social ideology suggests he must he instead begins to feel he is only responsible to himself instead, subverting that element of ideology. Aside from that small issue however this was a very good post, keep up the good work.
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