Robin Wood's 'Ideology, Genre, Auteur'

Through U.S history, the concept of achievement and therefore happiness has changed, modifying at the same time the notion of the American Dream. Nowadays, this hegemonic discourse is presented to cultural agents as a conviction that everyone in the US has the chance to be wealthy and live a happy life if they work hard enough. Little Miss Sunshine (2006) critiques this American dominant ideology of the “ideal” family, the “ideal” life and the pursuit of success, as well as female body standards. In his article “Ideology, Genre, Auteur”, theorist Robin Wood establishes twelve values which are present in American ideology and therefore “insistently embodied in and reinforced by the classical Hollywood cinema” (Wood 1997, 669). In Little Miss
They all try to succeed in the accomplishment of their own American Dream. Richard Hoover (Gregg Kinnear), the head of the family, faces bankruptcy issues and works as a motivational speaker, preaching his “9 steps to success”: a programme which he imagines will shower him wealth and fame quickly but only brings disillusionment. Sheryl Hoover (Toni Collette) is the mother figure; however, she does not adjust to the hegemonic discourse about how a mother should be: she smokes, she is not a good cook and she is the main breadwinner of the family. However, she strains herself to keep the family together and, as far as the audience can see, her dream is to establish a better life for her children. Dwayne (Paul Dano), the cynical teenager son who “hates everyone”, is deeply attached to his aims of becoming a pilot in the Air force. He even has taken a vow of silence until he reaches this goal, but his dream is crashed when he realizes he is colorblind. Grandpa Edwin (Alan Arkin), on the other hand, mainly seeks pleasure in his life and defines his American dream as enduring satisfaction, fantasizing about women and doing drugs. Frank (Steve Carrell), the suicidal, homosexual uncle must deal with his emotions and his stay with the family after being ditched by his lover. Last but not least, we have Olive (Abigail Breslin), the seven-year old girl who idolizes Miss America women and dreams of winning the “Little Miss Sunshine” beauty pageant; however her looks and eccentric personality do not fit into the pageant girl profile. Each of these characters has a demonstrative, yet varied interpretation of the American experience and all of them come together in order to pursue one specifically: Olive’s