Bildungsroman

toc =What is it?=

Bildungsroman (Bildung **-** education, Roman - novel) is defined by Webster's dictionary as "a novel dealing with the education and development of its protagonist". During the enlightenment period in Germany this novel genre arised. At the most basic level, the bildungsroman genre focuses on the growth, developement, and education of the protagonist from youth to adulthood. Bildungsroman novels include the following elements:


 * To spur the [|hero] onto his or her journey, some form of loss or discontent must jar him or her at an early stage away from the home or family setting.
 * The process of maturing is long, arduous, and gradual, consisting of repeated clashes between the protagonist's needs and desires and the views and judgments enforced by an unbending social order.
 * Eventually, the spirit and values of the social order become manifest in the protagonist, who is then accommodated into society. The novel ends with an assessment by the protagonist of himself/herself and his/her new place in that society.
 * (wikipedia.org, 2006)

Notable novels that exemplify the bildungsroman genre include: >
 * "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius" by Dave Eggers
 * "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
 * "Alice in Wonderland" by Lewis Carroll
 * "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad
 * "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens

=In Film=

The concept of the bildungsroman is seen in film with the "coming of age" that is seen in many movies. Thus, it is not limited to any one genre.

For example, in Kubrick's film, Full Metal Jacket, audiences watch as the characters go from novice recruits to battle hardened soldiers. Similarly, in Francis Ford Coppola's film, Apocalypse Now, the characters experience a loss of innocence as they come to terms with the brutal side of human nature in their hunt for Kurtz.

Other coming of age stories that reflect the concepts of the bildungsroman novel include:
 * **Stand By Me**, screenplay that used Stephen King's novella, "The Body", as its basis. Stand By Me follows the journey of Gordie and his friends as they search for the body of their dead classmate. Gordie suffers from neglect due to the death of his brother. The movie is narrated at its end, and the narrator (a grown up Gordie) reflects on the journey that he took with his friends in the summer before high school, and notes that as they grew up, they went their separate ways as they became part of their society.
 * **Beverly Hills Ninja**, movie starring the late actor Chris Farley, who stars as Haru. As a baby, Haru is found by a ninja master, in a basket on the shore of the ocean, and it is predicted that he will become a great ninja. Instead, a comedic twist is taken, and Haru is nothing more than a bumbling fool when he grows up. Spurned on by Sally Jones, Haru follows her to Beverly Hills as her sworn protector. With the help of his brother, Gobei, Haru is able to live up to the prophecies of the great ninja, thus shedding the image of a bumbling fool in a ninja suit.



=Sources=

"Bildungsroman." //Webster's College Dictionary//. New York: Random House, 1996.

"Bildungsroman." Wikipedia.org, 2006.

Beverly Hills Ninja.David Strohmenger 

Stand By Me. 