IndexIntroductionThe theme of stereotypes in "The Breakfast Club"ConclusionWorks Cited:IntroductionIn Denby's article "High School Confidential: Notes on Teen Movies", he asks a rhetorical question about high school movies school genre and whether or not they reflect reality or whether they are simply a set of conventions that refer to other films. High school genre films like John Hughes' “The Breakfast Club” show that, although there were strong stereotypes about the characters, all the characters realize that they have the same problems regardless of the stereotype, overcoming one of the conventions highlighted by Denby. After realizing this, the characters break down the barriers that separate them, “crossing them” as is common in real high schools and proving that, in the case of The Breakfast Club, high school genre films can follow reality. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The theme of stereotypes in "The Breakfast Club" All the kids in the movie had their problems. If they were stereotyped as a popular "princess" girl like Claire Standish whose parents use her to get back at each other. If they were stereotyped as the bad boy like John Bender whose parents abuse him both verbally and physically. If they were stereotyped as basket cases like Allison Reynolds, whose parents pay no attention and ignore her to the point that she was never born. If they were stereotyped as the nerd like Brian Johnson who is aware of the F grade he received and didn't want his parents to find out, ready to commit suicide using a flare gun. If they were stereotyped as the typical jock like Andrew Clark whose father wants him to become a wrestler because he doesn't tolerate losers in the family even though Andrew points out that he doesn't even like wrestling. Whether the character was a princess, a bad boy, a basket case, a nerd, or a jock, they all had their problems, each no better than anyone else's. In the Denby High School Confidential article, one of the conventions he points out is that “The enemy is not authority, the enemy is other teenagers and the social system imposing on each other.” In the case of The Breakfast Club, this convention is only true initially, eventually the characters overcome it after realizing that their problems were the same. The problems that all the characters faced helped the characters realize that they have more in common than it seems at first glance, allowing them to overcome the social system that their character stereotypes impose on each other. At the beginning of the film, the room was almost as silent as mice, everyone had a stereotype that everyone thought defined them at the beginning of the film, no one wanted to interact with people outside of their stereotypical social circle. Brain, portrayed as the stereotypical nerd in the film, found that these stereotypes were not what truly defined them. In the letter that Principal Vernon forced the boys to write as part of their detention, Brian wrote that "each of us is a brain... and an athlete... and a basket case... a princess... and a criminal". This shows that all the kids realize, after sharing their problems, that they all have more in common than they think, they realize that they are not just defined as a stereotype set in stone. It's much more associated with what happens in real high school, where students are stereotyped, but there's a lot more crossover and more groups to fit into those stereotypes. For example, in high school, not all jocks are dumb and not all nerds are weird. Only after they realized their characters had more going on.