The Relationship Between Identity and Place in Big Fish Essay

The relationship between identity and place is unique one. Many people believe the places you go will decide what type of person you will be. Based on this statement, we have decided Edward Bloom was an ambitious man who wanted to be the best person he could be. But he was also a womanizer and an unfit parent.

The river in Specter is where Edward sees the naked woman. What does this scene tell you about Edward? Does the naked woman have any significance? If so, what is its significance?

The river in Spectre plays a part in defining Edwards identity in the movie Big Fish. The river scene where Edward sees the naked woman in the river indicates to the viewer that his libido has been awoken. This is shown by a snake swimming towards the girl. Edward thinks itll harm her, so he swims towards it and grabs it. He scares her away and she disappears. The snake has turned into a stick. This may be misinterpreted as a hallucination at first, but a deeper insight shows that he had realized his desire for women.

I think this played a small part in shaping who Edward became. Seeing Sandra Templeton at the circus also made him fall in love with her instantly. Not long into the movie, Edward goes to Sandras university to tell her he loves her. In this scene, I though Edward was just saying those things to Sandra so he could get what he wants.

I interpreted this as just wanting to have sexual relations with her. He pursued her until he managed to win her heart. After he married Sandra, he was absent for many important events in their new life together, like their sons birth, Williams childhood and most importantly, raising his son. But it may appear that after her won the prize, he was now in search for something better. People will never be truly satisfied with what they have, and Edward proves this when he revisits Spectre. He helps Jenny rebuild her house, but long after it has been re-built, he hangs around and spends more time with her. All the while, this scene left me wondering, Where is Sandra? What is she doing? Does she know Edward is spending time with another woman?.I saw this as asexual adultery, because Edward didnt actually sleep with Jenny. In the duration of this affair, Edward was unknowingly leading Jenny on. She tried to kiss him, but he pulled away and mentioned he was in love with Sandra. At this point Edward has matured and now realizes that he hasnt been a really good husband to Sandra. She was playing the role of a single mother raising her son on her own, but in reality she was a housewife. Edwards constant absence was the sign of a being an inadequate husband.

I think Edward is an unfit parent, my reasons being that he was absent throughout his son Williams life. He was either on the road as a salesman, out having some adventure, or having an unintentional asexual affair with a woman from his past. As a young child, William was told a story of the day he was born. Edward claims to have caught a un-catch able fish the day William was born. I saw this as just a way of excusing himself from missing his sons birth. In this story, Edward said that he would have gutted the fish to get the ring back. But by doing so I would have robbed my own son the chance to catch a fish this size. He was trying to make it seem like he was catching the fish for William. Personally, missing the birth of your son is not a good sign. You would think because he missed his sons birth, he would try to make up for it and be a great father. But he was never around to raise his son and do fatherly things with William, like teach him valuable life lessons and such. As an adult, William tried to let his father know that their relationship wasnt steady because William only knew so much about his father, and the rest were fabrications. All he wanted to know was the truth, and Edward kept telling tall tales. This only caused the deteriorating relationship between father and son to worsen.

I had identified Edward as a womanizer, until he had mentioned he loved Sandra just as Jenny was about to kiss him. To me, this showed he realized he wasnt being a good husband to Sandra. But I still him as an unfit parent, because he did a very poor job with his son. Sandra did the best she could to raise William, and although he turned out alright he will know the joy of a healthy father son relationship.