Gentleman's Agreement story
Gentleman's Agreement is a 1947 American drama film based on Laura Z. Hobson's best-selling 1947 novel of the same title. The film is about a journalist who pretends to be Jewish to research an expose on the widespread antisemitism in New York City and the affluent communities of New Canaan and Darien, Connecticut. It was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won three: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Director. The movie was controversial in its day, as was a similar film on the same subject, Crossfire, which was released the same year (though that film was originally a story about homophobia, later changed to antisemitism).
14 total · 2 choice · 3 major · 9 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| antisemitism in society | choice | The film is about journalist Philip Schuyler Green pretending to be Jewish in order to research an expose on the widespread antisemitism in New York City. The title "Gentleman's Agreement" refers to an unspoken code excluding Jewish people from parts of society. |
| journalism | choice | The film is about journalist Philip Schuyler Green pretending to be Jewish in order to research an expose on the widespread antisemitism in New York City. |
| engaged couple | major | Philip and Kathy fell in love and got engaged. Kathy's passive condoning of antisemitism proved to to be a source of much tension in their relationship. |
| having a preconception challenged | major | In the process of pretending to be Jewish, Philip came to experience firsthand of the daily struggles faced by Jewish people. That such latent and unspoken prejudices against Jewish people prevailed in society came as something of a shock to Philip, leaving him deeply disturbed and brimming with moral indignation. Philip challenged Kathy and Elaine by pointing out that even though they were not overtly antisemitic they were still passively complicit in perpetuating anti-Jewish sentiments in society. |
| romantic love | major | Philip and Kathy fell in love and got engaged. Kathy's passive condoning of antisemitism proved to to be a source of much tension in their relationship. |
| boss and employee | minor | The magazine publisher John Minify supported Philip in his writing an expose on antisemitism. |
| childish bullying | minor | Tommy was shaken up after being attacked and called dirty names by some antisemitic classmates who believed he was Jewish. |
| coping with having a chronic condition | minor | The aging Mrs. Green was suffering from a heart condition. |
| father and son | minor | Philip and his aging mother cared for Philip's young son, Tommy. Much was made of them helping Tommy come to grips with antisemitism. |
| friendship | minor | Philip's childhood friend Dave, a Jewish, stayed with Philip and his family in New York while house hunting. While there, he shared the challenges he faced in society as a Jewish American. |