The Plot of Room

1). An introduction to the film. Briefly (very briefly) explain the plot.

Answer: The plot of Room is about a simple five (5) year old boy named Jack who is being held captive along with her mother. She is like any mother is, just trying to make sure that Jack is happy and safe given the circumstances that they are in. They are captive in a 10 by 10 foot space that is located just outside of the kidnapper’s house that Jack’s mother named the room. To hide Jack from the truth, she created this whole other universe within the Room. Remarkably Jack is able to live a full life in this tiny space. When Jack turns a year older his mind starts to wonder and his mother reaches her breaking point to where they come up with a risky plan to escape. Which brings the face to face with the challenges of the real world.

2). Describe how Room relates to socialization:

• Use one of the major theories of socialization to explain Jack’s situation.
• Which agents of socialization were factors in Jack’s life at the beginning of the film? Which agents of socialization influenced Jack at the end of the film? Explain the significance of each.

Answer: In the beginning of the movie, Jack received nurturing from his mother. Although, they had limited sources in the garden shed known as the room and his mother taught him as much as she could. At the beginning of the movie Jack had the mass media agent to influence his life. When locked up in the room he spent many hours watching television. At the end of the movie, Jack still had the family agent of socialization, but his family then grew bigger. He also still had the mass media agent if socialization because his mother was being interviewed on what happened. They also watched the television news updates on the kidnapper. The socialization of the school was also exhibited because Jack then met a little boy, the same or close to Jacks age. Jack needed to interact with a child his age because he never was exposed to that type of socialization, meaning he needed interaction with children in his age group. He needed the nurturing from the family because of what they were going through and the changes they were about to endure. These were important because Jack needed to connect to something. I think the theory of moral development explains Jack situation because he would tell his mother when he felt she was right or wrong. Throughout, the movie Jack experience plenty pain and pleasure.

3). Describe the significance of social interaction in Room:

• Explore statuses and roles in the film.
• What kind of role conflict and/or role strain did Jack’s mother face?
• How does role exit apply to the story?
• Explore the social construction of reality in the film.

Answer: To me because Jack grew up being afraid, he didn’t know how t interact with other people but his mother. He would whisper instead of speaking up. His mother on the other hand, had so much anger that she would lash out. The statuses that were presented in this film were daughter to mother, son to mother, grandson to grandparents, doctor at hospital, daughter to father, and etc. Roles of a wife, mother, researcher, and father were portrayed. When looking at the role strain of Jack’s mother, you notice that daughter to mother is the status and role conflict, but the role od mother as a strain. This is because Jack’s mother was still seen as her mother’s little girl despite that she was now a mother of her own. Role exit is displayed when his mother started to change into a different person and withdrew from her mother started to change into a different person a withdrew from her nurturing mother role. After the interview, she started doubting herself. Jack’s grandfather couldn’t sit with the idea of Jack being the product of an abduction so he left an didn’t return.