In “Lady Bird,” the director, Greta Gerwig, eloquently conveys the deeds of a teenage girl named Lady Bird, which unfolds with just the authenticity that we can relate to our adolescent life. The scene is set in Sacramento, California, in the USA, but the film does not only focus on the heroine’s search for identity and purpose during her last year of high school; it also carefully builds a world in which the themes discussed, such as friendship and romance reflected. Her navigating societal pressures, family struggles, and personal desires as a teen girl would precisely relate to the audience as she discusses diverse scenarios. Psychological themes are artfully woven into the film, with Gerwig skillfully unraveling how social norms and expectations shape Lady Bird and make the girl who she is. Through touching her peers and family members, the film questions the age-old gender stereotypes, illustrating how Lady Bird can be the rebel who breaks society’s norms on her path to individuality and autonomy. Lady Bird’s relationship with her mother plays a defining role and exemplifies the value of parental support and understanding. This, therefore, is how “Lady Bird” is depicted as a typical depiction of teenhood, identity, and dreams. As the movie shows Lady Bird’s journey cleverly, the viewers can think about their own cases in situations of change. The film will remain remembered as a timeless and pointed coming-of-age motion picture.
A cultural setting is a very powerful instrument for creating different sets of beliefs, values, and behaviors among adolescents. On the one hand, Lady Bird reveals her character and worldview to be greatly informed by the community of Sacramento in which she lives and her family’s personal history. Jensen (2021) talks about the culturally rooted nature of religiosity and spirituality manifesting during this stage of life. In “Lady Bird”, religion is just a background for a movie; however, it makes it possible to highlight how it impacts family affairs and the individual self. Lady Bird attends a Catholic-affiliated high school that is tightly knit in religious imagery and rituals.
Nonetheless, her ideas and convictions take precedence in comparison with her being brought up Catholic, resulting in a clash with her staunch mother. All movie schooled Lady Bird on who she was, thereby trying to be independent though she had her parents’ pressure. Lo et al. (2020) focus on how moral reasoning develops in a given culture; this builds bridges between individual autonomy and the ability to follow societal norms. On the other hand, she agrees to have wealthy friends even when the truth is different, demonstrating that social norms can influence ethical beings.
Besides that, Traff (2017) tackles ideas behind adolescent activism, especially regarding social justice and self-expression. Even though Lady Bird’s rebellion looks more personal rather than political, Her journey follows the main idea of teenage agency. However, even though her fight may appear personal or political, her journey follows the main concept of self-rebellion in teenagers. By opposing social barriers and traditional roles of women, she manifests life independence outside which she is growing up. A symbol of the protagonist’s stubbornness to study on the coast East of her town, the latter shows a teenager’s rebellion against circumstances and stands for the traits of resilience and activism observed in young female representatives.
The movie also investigates the influence of stereotypical gender on the extent to which teenagers will mature. The study shows us that the endorsement of gender stereotypes among teenagers and their parents, which are primarily the products of socialization, is an important factor in the shape of their gender identity. Lady Bird goes against the social boundaries of femininity and being a woman, trying to figure out everyday wisdom and notions of gain and satisfaction. She does not try to fit into established patriarchal diction; instead, she disregards gender expectations and is only interested in intellectual and creative discoveries beyond the confines of family life or romantic relationships. Precisely, Rubin et al. (2020) advocate the use of a sophisticated meaning of gender diversity, taking into consideration the full range of gender identities and expressions. Lady Bird’s sexual explorations and romantic relationships go against the single-sex stereotypes and come to the surface as a turning point in the movie of the binary gender and sexual orientation.
Along with her attempt to relate to Kyle, a high-status musician with the dominant position, she pursues the aspiration of companionship. She overrides the demanded “normality” of a relationship in various ways. When she discovers a deep friendship with Julie, her best friend, it reveals that the quality of platonic connections expresses our unique self-image and places us in the community. The unpredictability of her relations with her mother, Marion, is shown to be one of the realities of such a relationship and iterates on the rigidness of expectations set by her parents. For example, being unable to recognize that Ladybird is an individual and the many facets of who she is, Marion’s ignorance only generates more conflicts. This could be a return feel within the conservative set-up, which is a challenge that budding LGBTQ+ adolescents face.
Benito-Gomez and colleagues (2020) investigate how specific parenting practices that support autonomy and responsibility, such as creating situations where a child has authority and self-expression during adolescence, are very effective. The dissonance of Lady Bird’s mother as the emblem of giving direction and choosing oneself is revealed in the strained relationship of the daughter with her mother. Marion’s continuous nagging and over-protection not only lower Lady Bird’s confidence and self-worth but also make her unable to understand who she really is. In contrast, the sort of relationship that her father indicated is empathy and understanding, which is autonomy-support parenting. Lady Bird arrives at such a tough understanding that the unifying factor in the intertwined and complicated web of love with her family is the willingness to sacrifice and atone for everything. Even though her mother sometimes becomes an obstacle to her, Lady Bird understands that there is support and care behind provocation and occasionally inadvertent sacrifices that her mother is ready to make to keep the family strong and support the fulfillment of her daughter’s dreams and aspirations. The movie ends with Lady Bird’s denial of her roots, symbolized by her saying that her parents and siblings are her friends. The metamorphosis of her persona from a recalcitrant young person to a more mature individual who has found herself represents the complexity and change often associated with developing into the status of an emerging adult.
“Lady Bird” also closely depicts the manifold complications that constitute the journey into teenage life and adulthood by relying on an unsophisticated girl trying to navigate between her hopes and ambitions, family expectations, and the general rules of society. Via cultural psychology, gender stereotypes, and autonomy-supportive parents, the film is bound to bring the subtleties of identity formation and self-discovery before this vital time. Lady Bird’s expedition vividly portrays the doubts and gains connected with the aspiration to remain your person, be genuine with who you are, and make a real connection to the universe during the transition from childhood to adulthood. In as much as the audience, through thought-provoking, concludes that at the end of the day, there are some matters that prevail, namely the yearning for meaning and satisfaction despite the multiple complexities of teenhood and overall life.
Jensen, L. A. (2021). The cultural psychology of religiosity, spirituality, and secularism in adolescence. Adolescent Research Review, 6(3), 277-288. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40894-020-00143-0
Benito‐Gomez, M., Williams, K. N., McCurdy, A., & Fletcher, A. C. (2020). Autonomy‐supportive parenting in adolescence: Cultural variability in the contemporary United States. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 12(1), 7-26. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12362
Rubin, J. D., Atwood, S., & Olson, K. R. (2020). Studying gender diversity. Trends in cognitive sciences, 24(3), 163-165. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2019.12.011
Lo, J. H. Y., Fu, G., Lee, K., & Cameron, C. A. (2020). Development of moral reasoning in situational and cultural contexts. Journal of Moral Education, 49(2), 177-193. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057240.2018.1563881
Traff, J. K. (2017). Teenage girls’ narratives of becoming activist. The Journal of Academic Social Science, 12, 27-39. https://doi.org/10.1080/21582041.2017.1324173
deMayo, B., Kahn-Samuelson, S., & Olson, K. R. (2022). Endorsement of gender stereotypes in gender diverse and cisgender adolescents and their parents. Plos one, 17(6), e0269784. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0269784