Counter Culture: Liberation in the Diner throughout American Cinema, Post-WWII to Present Day

Abstract

This thesis examines the representation of diners in Hollywood films from post World War II America to present day and the messages in which those representations have evolved to convey a broader message of liberation amidst social upheaval and changing public attitudes that span eight decades, specifically in relation to the Civil Rights, gay liberation, and feminist movements. Through a formal analysis of specific film scenes centered in the diner, I create a framework that allows for an investigation of the relationship between commercial film and social movements and recontextualize each film to challenge historical perspectives of critics and scholars. I focus on four films in four separate decades that represented broader cinematic and social trends and then provide a textual analysis that communicates the diner as a place of liberation. I present a concrete argument that the depictions of oppressed groups who are cinematically positioned in the diner follow a progressive, narrative arc and mirror the societal gains that were made in respective points in history. In their experiences within the diner, the protagonists of these films gain personal agency and are set loose from societal constraints that are represented in various forms and their stories resonate with a greater public due to our collective knowledge of a uniquely American institution.