Critical Thinking - My Way

The film Finding Forrester is a riveting tale of two men, one old and near his death, the other young and just beginning his journey, that find themselves drawn together by not only their similarities but also their differences. Jamal Wallace and William Forrester were both outsiders in the worlds they lived in, both chastised and critiqued by the people in their lives. The film contains multiple instances that define the separation both Jamal and William experienced due to the treatment they received from those around them (peer groups, teachers, and assistants) and how they used each other to grow stronger in the face of diversity.

Jamal Wallace was a very intelligent, young black male that had found his place in the world that he grew up in, the Bronx. He was a 'c' average student by his own doing and an excellent basketball player. After scoring extremely high on his standardized academic tests, he found himself enrolled at a very prestigious private school located in a different part of town. Although this would allow him the opportunity to showcase what a brilliant student he was, Jamal found himself looked down upon by the students as well as the teachers based on his economic status, the color of his skin and his previous grades. Jamal was placed on the school basketball team where he was also not accepted even though he had much to offer his teammates. In one instance, another player (who was also not Caucasian) advised Jamal that he might think they were the same but they were not. Even though the two of them were part of a very small ethnic student population, this other player made sure Jamal understood that he was not going to be part of this team, or his tribe. Jamal did not have a choice of whether to be included or excluded, it was made clear to him that the decision was made even before he had arrived on the court that he would not be welcome and would always be considered the outsider.

William Forrester was a brilliant author who chose to remove himself from the grind that comes along with being an active part of society. He had experienced a great deal of loss in his younger years, including the loss of his brother and his mother. Shortly after his book was published and these losses occurred, William found that it was easier to step out of the limelight of his book and his fame and live a solitary existence. He was tired of people trying to figure out who he "really" was and what messages were really being conveyed by his writing when all of the theories were incorrect. He didn't want to live in a world where he couldn't just be himself without massive speculation about his every action and the true intent behind it. William wasn't excluded from society, he would have been very welcomed, yet he chose to exclude himself.

Wallace and Forrester developed a relationship which was beneficial to each of them. In Forrester's apartment it didn't matter what color Jamal's skin was, or how much money his mother made. Jamal didn't judge William for the decisions that he had made but rather revered him for the person that he was. The two of them together worked to develop confidence in their own abilities and eventually this led to Forrester leaving the apartment and Wallace standing up for himself to those that talked down to him.

These two scenes in the movie, along with many others, uphold my own personal beliefs on being an outsider and why people pass judgment on those around them without knowing anything about the person that they are judging. Identity markers play a huge role in our society, and too many times it is difficult to overcome them. Being labeled an "outsider" is a difficult title to carry however in many instances this is a title that is self proclaimed and not always one that is given.

Both Wallace and Forrester made decisions that swayed where their personal life journeys took them. Through hard work and perseverance, Wallace was able to overcome a lot of the judgments that had been passed about him, which had placed the "outsider" target on his back. Forrester, with Jamal's support and encouragement was able to put aside his self imposed prejudices and step out of his self imposed isolation. While these men were considered outsiders in their own separate lives, they came together and helped one another overcome the isolation.