Coming of Age

Stereotypes are given to people that last them a lifetime. Stereotype is defined as a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing. The way someone acts, talks, dresses all contribute to how this person is stereotyped. Common stereotypes in high school are the jock, the popular girl, the troubled child and the nerd. There are many coming of age films that have characters that play these stereotypical roles. Films such as Stand by Me, Now and Then, and The Sandlot all have characters that play stereotypical roles. Out of the three coming of age films that were watched during class,I believe Stand by Me had the most stereotypical characters that functioned to achieve the director’s purpose.

The main character in the film Stand by Me is Gordie. He fits the stereotype of being the youngest child. Often times in families where there are more than one child, the younger child fits a certain stereotype. This stereotype being the neglected child. The youngest child typically has more freedom than older siblings. Also, the youngest child is always compared to their older siblings. We see this in this film with how Gordie’s parents don’t really care about him or what he does. An example is when there’s a flashback from before Gordie’s brother died and the whole family is sitting at the dinner table. Gordie’s parents are so intrigued in his brother’s life and once Gordie goes to talk, they ignore him. When they’re at the dinner table Gordie’s dad starts to talk about the football game. Gordie repeatedly asks his father for the potatoes but he is ignored. Gordie’s brother begins to talk about the story that Gordie wrote and his father blames his wife for getting him off topic and says “see what you do? You mention girls and he’s already off topic and not focussed on the game”. This quote shows how neglected Gordie is by his parents, his father especially.

Gordie is also always compared to his older brother. Early on in the film, his father asks Gordie “Why can’t you have friends like Denny?”. Gordie will never be good enough for his parents because they’re constantly comparing him to his older brother, who seemed to be perfect. He even gets compared to his brother when he walks into the convenience store. The man who is behind the counter only talks about Denny, who is Gordie’s brother, and doesn’t bother to ask Gordie about his life. Gordie is know as “Denny’s brother” and not Gordie. Him being known as Denny’s brother rather than by his name says a lot about how he’s treated and how he fits the stereotype of being the youngest child.

The way Gordie is treated by everyone and especially his parents is to show how the stereotype of being the youngest child is put into effect. Gordie being the youngest child makes him feel as if he doesn’t matter to anyone and that he will never be good enough. Throughout the film we see Gordie break down from time to time. When the four boys are walking on the train tracks and he asks Chris “if he’s weird”. This was sparked from the man at the store asking if Gordie did anything. This question came up because the man was thinking of Gordie’s brother. Gordie constantly thinking that he is worthless and not good enough plays a big factor in Gordie’s character.

Rob Reiner, who is the director of this film, used Gordie being the youngest child to factor into his role in the film. I can personally relate to this considering I’m the youngest child in my family. I’m not treated exactly how Gordie is, but there are some similarities. I have more freedom than my older siblings did. Gordie’s parents seem to not care what he does and my parents are more lenient than they were with my brother and sister. Another example of how I can relate is being compared to elders. Every now and then I’ll get compared academically to my sister since she did very well in school. This isn’t to the extent of Gordie but it still gets you mentally. Rob Reiner uses Gordie’s character and his stereotype of being the youngest child to achieve his purpose of this film.