Media Analysis: The Breakfast Club

Editor's Note: This essay is a media analysis of Small Group Communication of The Breakfast Club.

“You see us as a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, and a criminal. Correct? That’s the way we saw each other at seven o’clock this morning. We were brainwashed…” (02:55-03:14). The Breakfast Club has been recorded as an iconic movie portraying the teenage life in the 1980’s. Directed by John Hughes, the film follows five high school students of different stereotypes as they learn to accept one another. Through one Saturday detention, they transform from five, separate individuals to one compatible group by recognizing they have more in common than hatred for the villainous vice principal, Richard Vernon (Paul Gleason). As instructed by the principal, they had to write a 1000 word essay describing who they think they are. The Breakfast Club is a small group communication through identity and group typing, the types of talk during detention, and a sense of ethical responsibility which are interwoven as the students of different stereotypes complete their essay.

Identity refers to the “psychological and/or physical boundaries that distinguish a group member from a non-group member” (Myers, 10). Set in the Shermer High School library, five big school students drag their feet on a Saturday morning to sit down at the library desks. As noted, Claire (princess) and Andrew (wrestling jock) sit in the same row whereas the others— Brian (brains), Allison (basket case), and Bender (criminal)— sat scattered around the room. It occurred this way because Claire and Andrew were familiar with one another; already acknowledging they were similar in identity which evidently leads into some level of group typing. Group typing is when a nonmember makes a positive or negative remark about another person based on membership to a particular group. Once Bender made some sly, offensive remarks to make some of the other students squirm, Andrew called out: “You know Bender, you don’t even count. If you disappeared forever it wouldn’t make a difference. You may as well not even exist at this school” (12:22-12:33). Like any small group, there’s bound to be conflict. In this instance, it’s the line of scrimmage between the personalities of popular clubs and non-popular. Bender had set up a group type by assuming Claire and Andrew were uppity because of their involvement in the wrestling club and student council. Brian spoke up about his own activities, earning Bender’s attention:

“Brian: Well, what I said was...I'm in the math club, the Latin club and the physics club...physics club.

[Bender nods and turns to Claire.]

Bender: Hey…Cherry...do you belong to the physics club?

Claire: That's an academic club...

Bender: So?

Claire: So…academic clubs aren't the same as other kinds of clubs.

Bender: Oh, but to dorks like him...

[Bender points at Brian.]

Bender:...they are” (13:22-13:49).

This conversation correlates to their task about writing a paper identifying who the students think they really are; a type of problem-solving talk in order to accomplish a task. The Breakfast Club evidently highlight all four different types of talks.

There are four types of talks in groups: problem-solving, roles, consciousness-raising, and encounter talks. If problem-solving talks occurred when they first met, consciousness-raising talk manifested during Benders mischief by removing a screw from Vernon’s door; making it impossible to stay open. Once Principle Vernon noticed the door, he blew up, storming into the library to accuse Bender of being the culprit. Consciousness-raising took form when the other students clarified with Vernon that the door closed on its own. Through the white lie, the group centered on “identification and pride”(Myers, p.12). For instance, Allison threw her head down in fear unto which Bender proclaimed “she doesn’t talk sir”. Both Claire and Andrew simply stated that the library door closed on its own. Vernon demanded Andrews help to prop the door open, making a remark of how he expected better from a Varsity member. Vernon also snapped at Brian who was counting the two month worth of detention Bender added up. None of the students ratted out Bender— communicating an inaudible understanding of who was hated the most: the principle. Role talk came up as the five students strolled down the hall illegally, stopping by Benders’ locker to pick up marijuana and had to run back to the library to avoid being caught by Vernon.

Brian, Claire, and Allison displayed the role of followers as Bender and Andrew fought for leadership. Roles were discussed throughout the whole movie: from Brian’s critical advisor statements to the role of harmonizer from Claire. Allison was more or less the quiet one that didn’t say much. Finally, encounter talk was established near the end. The five students were sitting closely, displaying interpersonal communication through “self-disclosure, responsiveness, and empathy” (Myers, 12). Andrew states “We’re all bizarre. Some of us are a little better at hiding it” (70:33-70:39). The group discussed what was wrong will all of them: Andrew can’t think for himself. Brian fears failing more than death. Allison is a compulsive liar. Claire doesn’t want people to know she’s a virgin valuing love over sex. And Bender is afraid of showing emotions. Then, they discuss how their parents treat them and the characters feel ignored or left alone too much of the time. “They all have strained relationships with their parents and are afraid of making the same mistakes as the adults around them. However, despite these evolving friendships, they're afraid that once the detention is over, they will return to their respective cliques and never speak to each other again” (The Synopsis of the Breakfast Club). The utilization of encounter talk shifted to ethics and ethical responsibility.

According to Scott Myers in “The fundamentals of small group communication”, ethics is defined as the “process of making judgments about a person’s behaviors or actions” (p.17). During self-disclosure, Brian brought up exactly what everyone was thinking:

“What’s going to happen to us on Monday when we’re all together again? I mean I consider you all my friends” (80:04-80:12).

Claire, Andrew, and Bender expressed ethical responsibility stemming from what will happen— everyone would go back to their cliques and never speak again. On the fence, everyone knew they would be assuming responsibility for actions by dissing their new friends. Through tears and confession, the audience doesn’t know if they acted like friends in school again but Brian does identify the group as the one and only “Breakfast Club” in the finished essay voiced over at the end.

At the end of the day, the students diverge back into their families; the song “Don’t you (Forget about me)” by the Simple Minds playing in the background.

“Will you recognize me?/ Call my name or walk on by/ Rain keeps falling” (Forsey and Schiff). A voice over of the essay Brian wrote — the accomplished task— explains that each person is a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, and a criminal.

The Breakfast Club is a small group communication of five high school students that encountered conflict with their identity and group typing, the expression of all four types of talks in detention, and the discovery of ethical responsibility. The five students from Shermer High School came together despite their differences in identity and expression of group typing. They learned to become friends through the talks; problem-solving based on an essay task which asks to define who the students think they really are, role during moments where they could’ve gotten caught, consciousness-raising talk to help Bender out of possible detention and of course encounter talk where the students defined their fears. Ethical responsibility is initiated when discussing what would occur on Monday when they returned back to school and back to their cliques. The Breakfast Club is and excellent small group communication centering on the four stereotypes and learning to overcome differences through talks to formulate as a group.

References

Forsey K. and Schiff S. (1985). Don’t you [Recorded by Simple Minds]. On The breakfast club soundtrack [cassette]. Santa Monica, California: A&M.

Hughes, J. (Director). (1985). The Breakfast Club [Motion picture]. United States: Universal Studios.

Hughes, J. (n.d.). The Breakfast Club script by John Hughes. The Breakfast Club script by John Hughes. Retrieved October 14, 2014, from http://www.dailyscript.com/scripts/breakfast_club.html

Myers, S. A., & Anderson, C. M. (2008). Components of Small Group Communication. The fundamentals of small group communication (pp. 1-22). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications, Inc..

The Synopsis of The Breakfast Club. (n.d.). IMDb. Retrieved October 13, 2014, from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088847/synopsis