Paper Summary:

This paper considers the character played by Charlie Chaplin, "the tramp" and whether or not he should be considered "free." The paper analyzes the tramp's freedom from the perspective of him being a male during the depression and his holding a factory job and standing in the bread lines.

From the Paper:

"In the film Modern Times, the character, "the Tramp," shows many instances of being and not being free. Charlie Chaplin, the character's creator, goes to great lengths to portray his view of freedom and the ways in which men of that era were depicted. The first way in which he is free is that the Tramp is a male. Being this alone gives him the political and social freedom to move within, or up in, society. A man had more rights than women, even though the Women's Movement had taken place and attention to Women's Suffrage was widely debated. Men still held the power to make the rights for women. Second, the Tramp was young enough, and seemingly able enough, to hold a job. In the scene where the warden of the prison gives him a letter, the Tramp becomes able to get a job. But just as soon as he gets one, he loses it for reasons not to be his fault. The poor thing has such bad karma he is put into situations like drinking with his old "buddy" from the factory when he gets the job at the department store. This, in turn, costs him a valuable job when he wakes up in a drunken stupor on a coat table. But the fact is, he is seemingly able to get and sustain work. This makes him free because he is able to get out of the breadlines and into a job. Lastly, the Tramp is free because of his innocence. Not to be confused with ignorance, the Tramp's innocence is child-like. He looks at everything with wonder, and in turn, falls for the young girl of the film. He knows she steals but instead of screaming at her or hitting her for it, he shakes his finger, she smiles, and he takes the smile as reassurance of her innocence. This innocence leaves him easily forgivable and easy to laugh at by his watchers. His freedom lies within these three facts because of the reasons I've stated. But for the sake of argument, there are ways in which his "freedom" isn't freedom at all."

Visitors who viewed this Essay also liked these:

• Analytical Essay # 44183 : "Frankenstein" and Modern Times"
• Comparison Essay # 118204 : "Arrowsmith", "Metropolis" and "Modern Times"
• Analytical Essay # 144548 : "Roger and Me," "Modern Times" and the Philosophy of Labor"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: