The Oscars: the annual gathering of wealthy, famous, and beautiful people who make a lot of money making movies. The big night showcases both established and up-and-coming movie stars who are being showered with accolades for their “brilliant” achievements. This year millions of Americans will tune into what some may call a “white-washed” ceremony of excess. This year’s lack of diversity among nominees has raised quite a few criticism of the Academy’s selection process. Many called for a boycott of the show. So, even with this stir of controversy, why is it that millions of people will still tune in? The answer may make us seem more human than we like.
The Oscars give the bright glimmer of hope that one can rise out of obscurity and become a household name. We have seen year after year the rise to stardom of children, elderly and minorities come from their humble Oscar roots. We as a culture love to root for the underdog. Rags-to-riches stories warm our hearts and remind us there is some good in the world. So it is every year we tune into the Oscars hopeful to see a nobody become a somebody. Though the rich old man club that the academy has been portrayed as is not completely gone, we do see a promising future for those who are outside of that category. And that is what Oscar viewers want, hope for the underdog,
The Oscars also spark a sort of envy for the good life in us. We, as Americans, often get sucked into the mindset of the American dream. Wouldn’t it be great to be filthy rich and to be known and beloved by the masses? When we watch the Oscars we often wish it were us on the stage accepting the golden little man. Our boring and mundane lives (though they are not as mundane as we may think they are) are briefly interrupted every February by the lives of the rich and famous. The Oscars serve as our reprieve to our ordinary lives. We as people desire excitement, and nothing is more exciting than Ellen ordering pizza or Neal Patrick Harris predicting the big winner. What we love about the Oscars is that the gold of that distracts us.
Finally, what I really think draws us to this star-studded gala is our natural draw to story. Ever since we were young we have been fascinated by stories. From bedtime to TV time we have been surrounded by stories. They help captivate the human experience through the use of imagination. What the Oscars has done is made a night of celebrating storytelling at its finest. We fall in love with these movies, not because of the actors or the effects but instead because of the story they tell. We watch the Oscars so that we may see a triumph of the best story telling. As people who are raised by stories, we cannot help but tune into the culmination of storytelling greatness.
So, in the midst of the commotion we see that the Oscars will hold strong. People will still watch the surprises and accolades and exclaim “I didn’t know he was dead.” So here is to us the Oscar crowd, may we always love the underdog, the good life, and the beauty of stories.
