Examples Of Structuralism In Slumdog Millionaire

Looking Slumdog Millionaire Through Good and Evil In Reading Lessons, Scott Carpenter states “Structuralism is a multifaceted group of theories with varied and disparate goals” (27), explaining it is a collection of many theories and patterns which are not actually focus on a single goal but can be studied from any point of view. Structuralism doesn’t study the original purpose of creator but focus in the structure of the text or movie. Carpenter illustrates that “just because an author meant to communicate something in a book, poem, or film, does not ensure that she or he will have done so” (28), explaining that structuralists do not care at all about authors’ intentions since intentions are not certain, and we can get much more interpretation …show more content…
Throughout the movie, Jamal’s life is portrayed in patterns of flashbacks from his childhood to his current life with support characters such as his lover, Latika and his brother, Salim, playing great roles. Throughout the movie, the use of the binary opposition “good vs. evil” is not only significant but also makes the audience follows along the story with irregular anticipation and …show more content…
evil” is clearly seen during the recurring scenes when the boys struggle between the good and the bad choices. One significant scene is when Salim try to rescue his brother because he knows Maman’s crews, the evil gang, is going to blind him. However, the scene ended by Salim letting go of Latika’s hand when she is about to get onto the train, and only two brothers gets away. This scene depicts that Salim struggles a lot between good and evil, which will serve as a pattern throughout the movie. We can see here that Salim is not completely evil although he ended up choosing the evil side when he let go Latika’s hand. In the same scene, more than one factors of “good vs. evil” are portrayed. Kids including Salim, Jamal and Latika think Maman is good like a saint, but in the end, he is an evil wearing a saint mask and is willing to go as far as blinding young children’s eyes to get the most profit out of them. This scene makes the audience significant enough to compare the evil, Maman, with the bad, Salim. It also foreshadows the series of choices that Salim will make throughout the movie as well as the ultimate choice he makes in the end. As a result, structurally, this scene is connected to many scenes and even the end of the movie, but the audience are still confused about where the movie is going, so it also acts as an essential transitional scene without revealing any secret of the