Put the beast in the cage

Greta 2022-04-21 08:01:09

The film begins on an ordinary day in a high school in the United States. As usual, this dull day is filled with homework, football, stars, rumors, etc. At this time, Eric and Alex, who were often bullied by others, accidentally bought guns through the Internet. After taking a nap at home, they decided to go to the campus to kill them... There was no hysterical yelling or even a word of nonsense. , A quiet killing like a silent film, staged without warning.
If it weren't for this movie, we might have never observed every classmate around us so closely and completely. Those who have never noticed pass by, those who seem to be there and there is nothing, those imperceptible fate are doomed... We stand outside the seemingly noisy and complex group, watching everyone's every move from the perspective of God. , Looking for clues that make things worse, as if a blind man touches the elephant.
Humans are social animals. We have social needs, respected needs, and self-fulfillment needs. Once a person is isolated due to various factors, it is like a small beast trapped in a cage. The ridicule around him will either erupt in silence or perish in silence. And he is just a teenager just like you. Before the battle of the trapped animals, were you an indifferent bystander or an active agitator, a fierce opponent or an enthusiastic participant? If there was someone who could accept and treat them well, would the outcome be different?
Confucian culture prohibits acknowledging and talking about violence, as if once you admit your own evil, it means that you have lost your "humanity." Therefore, as we grow up, this part becomes the biggest taboo, but this does not mean that we have never longed for violent aesthetics. There is a wild beast in everyone's heart, and the process of civilization is actually a process of individual discipline, that is, putting wild beasts in cages.
The tendency to violence is not terrible, but we must learn to be cautious and restrained. At the same time, being kind to others is actually being kind to yourself. If you do evil with others, although the disaster has not come, the blessings are far away; if you do good with others, although the blessings have not come, the disasters are far away.

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Extended Reading

Elephant quotes

  • Alex: [after Eric gets into the shower with him] Well this is it. We're gonna die today. I've never even kissed anyone before, have you?

    [Alex and Eric start kissing each other]

  • John McFarland: Excuse me sir, don't go in there!