Girl Marxism and Marriage

Gone Girl was released as a film in 2014, based on the book of the same name by Gillian Flynn. I have never read the book and so I can’t speak for it, however, the movie truly shocked me with its radical implications. I’m not sure how much of this depth is intentional, perhaps due to the generalisation that modern Hollywood films are shallow works. The following analysis will examine Gone Girl through a Marxist lens and I will presume the profundity of the work is intentional.

The most frequent and obvious political implication in Gone Girl is capitalism’s effect on Nick and Amy’ wedding. Throughout the initial phase of Amy’s disappearance, when Nick genuinely believes something sinister has happened, he frequently mentions money problems. Money issues are blamed for putting a strain on their marriage and it seems that society accepts this as a given and this shows how commonly marriages fall apart due to financial instability. Couples who marry can easily be caught off guard by the crashes and recessions that are inherent to the capitalist system and nothing is more challenging to a relationship than the prospect of poverty. …

site:

https://werf.org/sky/Ea-v-Gi.html
https://werf.org/sky/Ea-v-Gi1.html
https://werf.org/sky/Ea-v-Gi2.html
https://werf.org/sky/Ea-v-Gi3.html
https://werf.org/sky/Ea-v-Gi4.html
https://www.thefederation.org/nfl/a-v-a.html
https://www.thefederation.org/nfl/a-v-b.html
https://www.thefederation.org/nfl/a-v-e.html
https://www.thefederation.org/nfl/a-v-c.html
https://www.thefederation.org/nfl/a-v-f.html
https://www.thefederation.org/nfl/a-v-d.html
https://werf.org/bd/a-v-a.html
https://werf.org/bd/a-v-b.html
https://werf.org/bd/a-v-c.html
https://werf.org/bd/a-v-d.html
https://werf.org/bd/a-v-e.html
https://werf.org/bd/a-v-f.html
https://maimonides.org/us/n-v-a.html
https://maimonides.org/us/n-v-b.html
https://maimonides.org/us/n-v-c.html
https://maimonides.org/us/n-v-d.html
https://maimonides.org/us/n-v-e.html
https://maimonides.org/us/n-v-f.html
https://maimonides.org/fil/Ea-v-Gi.html
https://maimonides.org/fil/Ea-v-Gi1.html
https://maimonides.org/fil/Ea-v-Gi2.html
https://maimonides.org/fil/Ea-v-Gi3.html
https://maimonides.org/fil/Ea-v-Gi4.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-a.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-b.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-c.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-d.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-e.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-f.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-g.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-h.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-i.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-j.html
https://werf.org/pix/b-v-k.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-a.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-b.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-c.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-d.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-e.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-f.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-g.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-h.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-i.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-j.html
https://maimonides.org/ja/b-v-k.html
https://werf.org/nf/b-v-a.html
https://werf.org/nf/b-v-b.html
https://werf.org/nf/b-v-c.html
https://werf.org/nf/b-v-d.html
https://werf.org/nf/b-v-e.html
https://maimonides.org/fl/b-v-a.html
https://maimonides.org/fl/b-v-b.html
https://maimonides.org/fl/b-v-c.html
https://maimonides.org/fl/b-v-d.html
https://maimonides.org/fl/b-v-e.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/J-v-a.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/J-v-b.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/J-v-c.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/J-v-d.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/J-v-e.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/D-v-a.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/D-v-b.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/D-v-c.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/D-v-d.html
https://maimonides.org/jd/D-v-e.html
https://werf.org/web/T-v-r.html
https://werf.org/web/T-v-s.html
https://werf.org/web/T-v-t.html
https://werf.org/web/t-v-z.html
https://werf.org/web/t-v-y.html
https://werf.org/web/t-v-x.html
https://werf.org/web/t-v-v.html
https://werf.org/web/t-v-u.html
https://werf.org/web/b-v-j.html
https://werf.org/web/b-v-i.html
https://werf.org/web/b-v-h.html
https://werf.org/web/b-v-g.html
https://werf.org/web/b-v-f.html
https://werf.org/web/T-v-q.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-x.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-y.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-z.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-u.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-v.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-f.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-g.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-h.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-i.html
https://maimonides.org/web/t-v-j.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-0.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-1.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-10.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-2.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-3.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-4.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-5.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-6.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-7.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-8.html
http://werf.org/sites/B-v-9.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-0.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-1.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-10.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-2.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-3.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-4.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-5.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-6.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-7.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-8.html
https://maimonides.org/spo/B-v-9.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/b-v-s1.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/b-v-s2.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/b-v-s3.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/b-v-s4.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/b-v-s5.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/T-v-p1.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/T-v-p2.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/T-v-p3.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/T-v-p4.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/T-v-p5.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/T-v-p6.html
https://maimonides.org/nft/T-v-p7.html
https://maimonides.org/wz/p-v-j.html
https://maimonides.org/wz/p-v-j1.html
https://maimonides.org/wz/p-v-j2.html
https://maimonides.org/wz/p-v-j3.html
https://maimonides.org/wz/p-v-j4.html
https://maimonides.org/wz/p-v-j5.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n1.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n2.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n3.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n4.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n5.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n6.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n7.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n8.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n9.html
https://maimonides.org/nf/w-v-n10.html
https://werf.org/pac/w-v-n10.html
https://werf.org/pac/w-v-n9.html
https://werf.org/pac/w-v-n8.html
https://werf.org/pac/w-v-n7.html
https://werf.org/pac/w-v-n6.html
https://maimonides.org/ab/y-v-j1.html
https://maimonides.org/ab/y-v-j2.html
https://maimonides.org/ab/y-v-j3.html
https://maimonides.org/ab/y-v-j4.html
https://maimonides.org/ab/y-v-j5.html
https://werf.org/w10/PT-v-BC1.html
https://werf.org/w10/PT-v-BC2.html
https://werf.org/w10/PT-v-BC3.html
https://werf.org/w10/PT-v-BC4.html
https://werf.org/w10/PT-v-BC5.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/W-v-a.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/W-v-b.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/W-v-c.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/W-v-d.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/W-v-e.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/W-v-f.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/W-v-g.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/W-v-L.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-a.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-b.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-c.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-d.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-e.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-f.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-g.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-h.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-i.html
https://maimonides.org/nfl/L-v-W.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-a.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-b.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-c.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-d.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-e.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-f.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-g.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-h.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-i.html
http://werf.org/nfl/L-v-W.html

Alienation is another Marxist theme which is pertinent to our understanding of Gone Girl, and more specifically, Amy’s development. As a child, Amy was quite literally turned into a commodity by her mother. Her mother created an exaggeratedly perfect version of her daughter; ‘Amazing Amy’. Amy’s reality was extremely separated from her fictional caricature, as pointed out by Amy in the film, Amazing Amy got a dog off of her fictional parents, however, Amy’s parents did not follow suit. From the beginning of the movie, Amy shows her resentment for her parents and how they “plagiarized [her] childhood”.

Amy’s resentment and distance from this idealised version of herself is a clear analogy for Karl Marx’s theory of alienation. Alienation in the Marxist sense is caused when a worker is alienated from the product he creates. This estrangement from the self is delineated by a meaningless mass production of commodities whereby workers are reduced to small cogs in a larger machine. Similarly, Amy is one small cog in the production of ‘Amazing Amy’. Furthermore, the relentless pursuit of happiness under capitalism which workers are subjected to, mirrors the alienation and depression which Amy feels in her helpless attempt to live up to ‘Amazing Amy’.

Gone Girl examines how the contradictions and crises of capitalism can both destroy marriages and also push someone into complete psychopathy. I don’t have the time or the expertise to get into the nurture vs nature debate around sociopaths like Amy, however, it is clear that the film portrays capitalist production as at least one catalyst as to why Amy snaps.