The Graduate: Symbolism in Film

How visual imagery is used to enhance the core themes of Mike Nichols’ seminal 1967 film.

For many, symbolism is a titanic concept they can’t even scratch the surface of. A complex tool in the arsenal of the well-equipped filmmaker, symbolism can bury a film in the abstract, leaving some bewildered and confused. Though, this is not its typical nature, for symbolism is simply the use of an object to represent something else, most often some kind of idea or concept. With a spectrum of usages, symbolism can vary from unorthodox and avant-garde techniques meant to challenge a viewer’s interpretation, to basic observations used as a parallel to the occurring action, as a way of amplifying the intended message. The purpose of symbolism is the same either way, to reinforce the already occurring themes through juxtaposing visuals and actions. The implementation of symbolism can raise a film to a more artistic level, giving seemingly simple stories depth and nuance that transform their material into masterworks. Once such masterwork, director Mike Nichol’s sophomore film, The Graduate (1967), is full to the brim with a variety of symbolism that does exactly that.

The Graduate tells the story of young Benjamin Braddock, a recent college graduate returning home without much a clue for where to go next. He begins an affair with the much older Mrs. Robinson, a friend of his parents with a daughter whom Ben eventually becomes infatuated with. Mrs. Robinson forbids Ben from seeing Elaine, but he chooses to pursue her anyway, which leads to a climatic race to the church Elaine is getting married at. He whisks her away as they jump on a bus to who-knows-where, and the film ends ambiguously, leaving the audience to wonder what will become of their lives, and if they made the right choice. The film’s main themes revolve around Ben’s uncertainty about his direction in life, contrasted by the expectations imposed on him by the adults surrounding him. Mike Nichols was particular with his choice of symbolism. He uses a variety of visuals to reinforce the ideas that the narrative is already laying out. Four motifs, in particular, stand out among the rest in how they continually surface in key moments to emphasize what the characters are feeling and going through.

Adulthood:

Despite Ben’s recent graduation from college, his final step out of the learning stages of youth, he is very reluctant to take on the responsibilities of adulthood. Still quite young, just having turned 21, he continually neglects the responsibility of making a decision on what he wants to do with the rest of his life. Instead, he chooses to go through the motions each day without really moving forward. Right away, we can see this as Ben steps off the plane onto the moving sidewalk. He moves across the screen aimlessly with the opening titles, uncertain of where he is going next. Ben is clearly not ready for this next stage in his life, and continually rejects suggestions from his parents or their friends of what he should do. One man famously tells Ben his future in one word: “Plastics.”

This is exactly how Ben sees his life if he follows in line with parents’ wishes: a fake and artificial one that would only appease them, meaning nothing more than being a trophy of their accomplishment. Without any other options, Ben rejects adulthood entirely as a means of putting off the responsibility of making the next step in life. He abstains from smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol, both pleasures reserved exclusively for adults. Mrs. Robinson is the first to offer Ben a drink, which he refuses. She forces the drink into his hands anyway, just as she forced Ben to drive her home and forced him to walk her inside.

Despite how forceful she is with him, though, she doesn’t force Ben to sleep with her during this initial seduction. She tells him she is available to make an arrangement at any time, giving Ben the choice to say no. Every other person in Ben’s life has been trying to force him to do what they think is best. His parents pressure him to come to a party he doesn’t want to and ignore the worries he expresses of the future; the family friend, Mr. Maguire, tells Ben to pursue a career he has no interest in; and even Mr. Robinson tells Ben to “sow some wild oats” and to call Elaine for a date without any regard to Ben’s feelings on the matter. Mrs. Robinson is the only person to give Ben a choice in his life, an opportunity to do something “different” as he, himself, puts it.

When Mrs. Robinson arrives at the hotel bar to meet Ben for their first affair we see him with an ashtray full of cigarettes as he nurses a drink. Having been given the opportunity to, Ben has made the choice to plunge into adulthood by partaking in the recreations he refused before, with the final step to be made in the room upstairs.

Jungle:

Mike Nichols had a very clear image of how he wanted to present Mrs. Robinson when he set out to make the film. In his audio commentary, he speaks of how he and costume designer, Patricia Zipprodt, decided that, “Mrs. Robinson would always be a jungle animal,” to visually communicate her predatory nature. We first see these symbols in the set decoration of Mrs. Robinson’s home after she has coerced Ben to walk her inside. The patio just outside the bar fills the frame with exotic foliage, and communicates an image of a dense jungle Ben has walked into. Along with that, we also see some of the containers at the bar bear a distinct zebra print design. Most importantly of all, though, is Mrs. Robinson’s attire.

In every scene, Mrs. Robinson is seen wearing some kind of animal print. When she first begins undressing in front of Ben, her underwear is leopard print — a notably aggressive and nocturnal predator — befitting of her first attempt to seduce Ben. We see her next meeting with Ben at the hotel bar (which is also adorned in jungle foliage), dressed casually in a cheetah print coat over a simple black top. When they rendezvous at the hotel room for the affair, she enters with her coat off, and we notice the less threatening animal for the print of her skirt.

The change of design from an intimidating predator to an herbivorous giraffe is notable as this occurs in conjunction with Ben becoming noticeably less intimidated by Mrs. Robinson as they prepare to begin their affair. Additionally, the choice to dress Mrs. Robinson solely in animal print is so effective because of its popularity in women’s fashion during the 1960’s. It was representative of high class and wealth, and for the character of Mrs. Robinson, extends to constantly remind the audience of how underneath all the makeup and fancy jewelry, she is still a vicious animal constantly watching her prey.

Shadows:

The use of shadows as a motif is easily one of the most common forms of symbolism used in film. Typically used to highlight the darkness of a character, or their morally ambiguous nature, shadows first began appearing as common motifs in the German Expressionism films of the 1920’s and 30’s. Notable examples would be the monstrous vampire Count Orlok in F.W. Murnau’s gothic masterpiece Nosferatu (1922) or the malicious child murderer Hans Beckert in Fritz Lang’s M (1931). Director Mike Nichols has taken this classic motif and set it as a thematic chorus in The Graduate, popping up time and again to remind us of the hidden truths and feelings within the characters.

We first see this effect communicated to us in Ben’s bedroom, which remains dark except for the dim light of the fish tank — that is, until Mrs. Robinson first opens the door, having supposedly mistaken it for the bathroom. Light floods into the room, as if to say that Mrs. Robinson will “shed light” on Ben’s dim outlook on life. She does this again when she coerces Ben to follow her into her home because she, “doesn’t feel safe until [she] gets the lights on.” Ben enters the house and follows Mrs. Robinson’s directions into the sun porch. The room remains dark, only sparsely illuminated by the bright porch lights that cast harsh shadows around the room. Ben manages to stay in the light until the moment he realizes Mrs. Robinson’s true intentions, at which point he steps back fully into the shadows, fearing the reality of the situation he has found himself in.

This leads to the beginning of the plot’s central conflict: Ben’s sordid affair with Mrs. Robinson. Ben immediately understands how disastrous the consequences would be if this encounter were to come to light, beginning with the very next sequence when Mr. Robinson comes home from a late night of golf. Ben stays within the shadows throughout the conversation, desperately trying to hide the truth of what just happened upstairs. Ben has to harbor this secret throughout the film and will attempt to keep it shrouded by the darkness whenever he fears he may be exposed. When Ben first opens the door to the hotel room before Mrs. Robinson arrives, he turns the lights on briefly while he contemplates what he is about to do. Quickly, he turns the lights back off and makes his way around the room to each window and shuts the blinds. By shutting out all of the light from the room, he is not only taking precaution to make sure he isn’t caught in the act, but also shutting out all the light symbolically for himself to stay in a perpetual state of denial.

Ben isn’t the only person trying to keep something hidden away in the shadows, though. When Ben has grown tired of his shallow relationship with Mrs. Robinson, he tries to engage her in conversation before their next affair. He turns the lamp on, and she subsequently refuses to cooperate, quickly turning the lights back off. Obviously more aloof and distant than she normally is, Mrs. Robinson is clearly trying to hide something. Ben gets out of bed and begins opening the blinds to let light into the room as he pries further to get Mrs. Robinson to open up. She turns the lamp back on as she begins to relent, first asking Ben if he wants to talk about himself in an attempt to shift the conversation away from her. Ben doesn’t allow her to and tells her to think of something else. Being pressured to open up, Mrs. Robinson hides in the darkness again and suggests the subject of art, which she immediately claims to know nothing about. The scene continues to play in complete darkness as Ben continually pushes to get some kind of dialogue between them, eventually arriving on the subject of her estranged marriage. Trying her best to avoid answering Ben’s questions, she finally exposes herself in the light, after he stumbles upon the truth of the dubious foundation for their marriage.

The scene continues to play out fully illuminated now as the truth continues to spill out. Because of an unfortunate conception in a Ford, Mrs. Robinson reveals that she had to put her life on hold to marry Mr. Robinson, giving up her passion for art and leaving college to raise her daughter. We begin to see the seedlings of Mrs. Robinson’s hidden contempt for her Elaine as she turns off the lights again while Ben continues to talk about her. Shortly after, we see Ben begrudgingly admit his own hidden truth. He shamefully hides in the shadows as he apologizes to Mrs. Robinson, and admits that this affair is the one thing he has going for him. Even though he says he’s not proud of this at all, he knows it’s the only thing he can look forward to doing currently, and until now has refused to accept the truth in the pleasure he takes from it.

Later on, we see two more characters cloaked in shadows as they face their own shame. When Elaine visits Ben on the morning he is to leave Berkley, the room is covered in darkness as she asks him to kiss her. She has been denying her feelings for him, desperately trying to hate him since learning of his affair with her mother, and is now forced to confront these feelings before he leaves. Mr. Robinson is similarly situated in the darkness when he finally confronts Ben about his actions. He vehemently berates Ben as he tells him about the irreparable harm this has caused on his and Mrs. Robinson’s marriage, and how it is leading to an inevitable and disgraceful divorce. He chokes up a bit before insulting Ben one last time on his way out the door.

Water:

The most famous, and prominent, use of symbolism throughout The Graduate would most definitely be the presence of water to show Ben’s sensation of drowning as he struggles in figuring out what to do with his life. The first shot of Ben back in his parents’ home has him framed entirely by the fish tank in his room, making him seemingly appear underwater like the scuba diver in the tank to his right. His facial expression is distant, and he asks his father to leave him alone as he contemplates his future, yearning for it to be “different”. Ben will often return to his fish tank whenever he feels like he’s drowning to stare at it and think; first doing so when he runs back upstairs just before Mrs. Robinson follows him in. Staring and thinking will never get Ben anywhere, though; he will remain perpetually drowning in this sea of depression unless he finds a way to fish himself out from the depths of it, much like we see him fish his keys out from the very fish tank used to represent his despondent state.

However, the lost ship that is Ben in the crashing waves of life’s ocean is too big for such a small fish tank alone to contain. The luxurious pool of the wealthy Braddock family will fare to represent the majority of Ben’s inability to tread water. In many shots throughout the film the pool looms in the background, often encompassing a majority of the screen, and Ben often looking into it seeing his sullen expression reflected back at himself. The pool is featured most prominently during Ben’s 21st birthday party. Surrounded only by his parents and their friends, Ben is pressured to make an appearance in a ridiculous scuba suit his parents have bought him. Clearly uncomfortable with it, his parents still insist and force him into the pool as their friends cheer him on. The scene calls back to the earlier party where Ben’s parents force him to join despite his refusal, and in attendance are only people Ben knows as friends of his parents who continue to pressure Ben into the life his parents have been forcing on him throughout his time in school. Even as Ben tried to pull himself out of the water, his parents both physically force him back in, keeping his head below the surface. He remains at the bottom of the pool, motionless as we hear the conversation of the next scene already taking place: his initial phone call to Mrs. Robinson.

The next time Ben returns to the pool is after his first affair with Mrs. Robinson, and instead of sinking to the bottom, he floats above the water on a plastic raft. With a beer in his hand and sporting a pair of sunglasses, Ben appears to be somewhat at peace for the first time in the film. His affair with Mrs. Robinson has given him something to cling onto: a new direction to head in to keep him treading water. Ben is able to stay above water for some time, still floating in the scene just after Ben is able to get Mrs. Robinson to open up, and is forbidden to see Elaine. Ben is no longer by himself in the pool this time, though, his parents paddle alongside him with only their heads above water. Like Ben was before, they now are at a loss of what to do. They’ve continually pressed Ben to make a change and encouraged him to take Elaine out on a date. Ben refuses, trying to make any excuse not to see her. Feeling they’ve exhausted all other options, Ben’s parents tell him they’ll have no other choice but to invite all the Robinsons over if Ben doesn’t take Elaine out. The shocking realization of the disastrous consequences that will have propel Ben off his floater and back into water, figuratively drowning like he was before.

All the necessary material to punctuate the core message of The Graduate can be found just within the dialogue, but film is just as much a visual medium as it is narrative. The synergy of film depends on the ability to pair story and visual together, and symbolism is the tool that serves to relate the story to an audience on a deeper level. A film doesn’t require symbolism to be considered great, but it allows an audience to engage more and adds to their interpretation of the film, thus strengthening their experience and connection with the material. Mike Nichol’s intentional use of symbolism demonstrates his complete understanding of the characters, as he clearly aims to more fully represent the story’s key ideals. The Graduate is only one example out of countless films that illustrate how effective symbolism can change a great film into a bona fide classic.

The Graduate and all images used are property of Embassy Pictures, under the fair use doctrine of US Copyright Law, for transformative purposes.