Ideologies
are a set rules of behaviors instilled in the members of society from their
youth. Ideologies are not taught but more instinctive. This sense of
instinctive ideology can be seen in the scene 42:40 to 44:40 in Sin Nombre. To the individuals on the
train Willy is a member of a gang and has just murdered another individual while
taking part in the robbery of the migrants. Although the man Willy killed was
dangerous and another gang member, the people on the train still do not want
him aboard any longer.
In
a culture where gangs are so prevalent, people see from a very young age how
gang members are bad and can only bring trouble from personal encounters or how
the adults treat the gang members. Even later on in the movie when Sayra and
Willy take refuge in a house for migrants, Willy’s past as a gang member
hinders his acceptance among the others. Along with being a member of a gang,
Willy also bears the weight of having murdered someone in a very blunt violent
attack. This show of violence convinces the migrants riding the train that
Willy is dangerous. In most cultures, violent criminals are thought not capable
of reform or redemption and thus shunned. The men on the train conspire to
throw Willy off the train and almost succeed but they are interrupted by Sayra calling
out that she saw border patrol.
When
Sayra saves Willy’s life by calling out, she goes against the dominant
ideology. While the dominant ideology argues that all gang members are harmful
to other citizens, Sayra has a consciousness-raising moment when she decides
that Willy is not like other gang members. Sayra’s struggle to decide whether
or not to go against the dominant ideology can be seen when she frantically
looks around to the others surrounding her. Sayra sees Willy as well as his
role within society in a new light and thus chooses to go against the dominant
ideology.
Another
ideology that can be seen within this scene is of the gang itself. Willy is
only aboard the train because his leader ordered him too. The resulting murder
of Willy’s gang leader successfully places Willy on the gang’s list of enemies.
Although it is not specifically stated, Willy knows that his act of defiance
will place his life in danger for disobeying the gang he once called family.
Just as a family, the gang in Sin Nombre
is centered on a father figure who provides for the members using violence,
coercion, and criminal activity. Just as Sayra had a consciousness-raising
moment, so does Willy when he decides to finally stand up to Lil’ Mago.
Willy
and Sayra’s stories mirror each other through their consciousness-raising
moments. Each fights against a dominant ideology and must provide themselves
with their own freedom from that oppressive force. Sayra finds her voice among
family who would not listen and Willy finds his freedom among acts of violence.
Each ideology that is represented in the scene provides more context as well as
power behind the acts of defiance that Sayra and Willy participate in.
Wow. I actually was very critical of Sayra; initially, I didn't like her character and considered her acts of defiance pointless. I agree, apparently her rebellious behavior stemmed from a sort of consciousness-raising, which provided her own voice. Maybe that's why she easily abandoned her family; she had no identity with them and thought it more worthwhile to explore this new found awareness--to gain herself. You provided a lot of perspective and simultaneously clarified what this assignment, inclusive of ideology, was supposed to be. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI never thought Sayra as stupid for calling out his name on the train, but I saw it as an act of defiance that created pivotal moments in the film. Had she not spoken out, she would have never made it to America. For both Willy and Sayra going against the dominant ideology were coming of age moments that went against their status qou. There was a lot of irony in the idea of a gang being a family. It is sad that many young boys are surrounded by such violence and believe that a gang is the idea of a one true family. In the scene where Lil mago brings the baby out is completely off the typical American family ideology. No one would raise there son in a gang.. well typically. Willy and Sayra find their identity through the decisions they make and find freedom from , willy his gang and sayra her father.
ReplyDeleteI like how you paralleled Sayra and Willy's consciousness raising moments in the film. I had not thought of this aspect of their decisions before as going against the dominant ideology of each group. Both character’s abilities to see outside the box and not conform to the dominant ideology was important to the plot. I saw a similar type of deviation from dominant ideology in Smiley’s character. His family’s ideology is similar to that of Sayra’s; gangs are dangerous and should be avoided. Smiley’s grandma specifically urges him to stay away from Willy and the dangers of gang life but he chooses the gang’s ideology over his family which I found interesting and indicative of the power gangs and gang ideology holds in South America.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I'm not the only one who recognized this film's fascinating propensity for manipulating the viewer's ideas of positive and negative communities. I found it beyond interesting that in many scenes, the communal ideology of the gangs was portrayed as positive (due to their tightly-knit friendships/"brotherhood until death" mentality), while meanwhile, the communal ideology of the group of people that came together to throw Willy off the freight train was portrayed as a negative and poorly-executed form of community. I find it utterly captivating how easy it is for filmmakers to manipulate viewer interpretation of a given situation. Grey areas are an art.
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