w w w . on l in e t h e r a p y instit u t e . c o m
REEL CULTURE
Jean-Anne Sutherland
Santa: The “Fixed Illusion” in Miracle on 34th Street At the time of this writing, we are amidst the holiday season, which also means the inundation of many holiday films. Of course, I am being generous when I say “holiday.” Personally, I have not discovered a plethora of Hanukkah or Kwanza films. And, as I live in the United States, what I really mean is: Hollywood, blockbuster, American, Christmas films. Most folk feel particularly attached to their favorite holiday film. There are the sentimental (It’s a Wonderful Life), the hilarious (Jim Carrey in How the Grinch Stole Christmas) and, the spectacular (The Polar Express). What these holiday films share is the very question that revolves around Christmas: do you, or do you not believe? Do you believe that Christmas, Santa, or any of this is actually real? Ah, Santa, and believing, and “reality.” That’s what Miracle on 34th Street tackles. While it is not the only film to portray belief in the eyes of children – the belief that then slips gloomily from the lives of adults--it is perhaps the best at depicting what social psychologists call perception of reality. This film does not merely ask, “Is Santa real?” It asks the question, “what does ‘real’ mean?” Miracle does not resolve the cultural incongruities of belief, reality, Christmas, and Santa, as do so many other films: Santa flying overhead, empirically demonstrating his real-ness (e.g., Elf; The Santa Clause). That is, once we SEE him, then, and only then are we convinced that he is “real.” Miracle plays with the question of reality itself – and who gets to define it. Naturally, a couple of psychologists are brought in. The uptight empiricist argues that because Kringle insists he is Santa, he is a loony. The second psychologist finds Kringle harmless,
claiming that there are “plenty of people walking around with delusions.” Thus, one’s belief in what is “real,” such as in this case, is ultimately harmless. The prosecutor must prove that Kringle’s beliefs make him a menace to society. Kringle’s lawyer has to convince the Judge that Kringle is the “real” Santa Claus. And the Judge has to rule whether this Santa is “real” or not. During Kringle’s trial, his lawyer asks the Judge if he believes himself to be who he is… Of course, is the answer. The lawyer responds, “If he (Kringle) is the person he believes himself to be then he is just as sane as you are.” Who truly judges what reality is to another? Social psychologists contend that reality itself is a social construction. What is “real” to an individual or group may indeed appear crazy to another. To the symbolic interactionist, truth and reality are produced in social contexts. Miracle asks us to look at our cultural rules about what is “real” and what is not. Moreover, it depicts the western basis of reality (i.e., empirical proof ) and illustrates the social costs of behavior that is, well, not “normal.” Miracle reminds us that the holiday season is about believing without the need for proof. We are asked to let go of our passion for fastidious pragmatism and allow our sense of “reality” to be stretched a bit. Is Santa real? He is to some children. And that, to them, sure feels real. Jean-Anne Sutherland, Ph.D. is assistant professor of sociology at University of North Carolina Wilmington, USA with one of her research focuses being sociology through film. T I L T MAGAZ I N E j a n u a r y 2 0 1 1
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