Down With Potterism!

BitPig Online ^ | 2003.12.22 | BitPig [B-Chan]

[B-Chan]

I always had my suspicions that the Baileys were Catholic. Although George Bailey was “touched by an angel” (second class, anyway), the issue of precisely which church the Baileys of Bedford Falls attended was never specified in Frank Capra's 1946 classic It’s a Wonderful Life. Still, The Bailey family, and George in particular, exemplify the essence of Catholic social teaching. The Baileys were entrepreneurs with a definite desire to profit from their hard work, yes — but they were ethical in their practice of free enterprise. Their desire to profit from their labor was subordinate to their devotion to the Natural Law, to the divine commandment to “love thy neighbor as thyself” that lies at the basis of the Christian ethic. Unlike the monopolistic Mr. Potter, Peter Bailey and his family did not make a god of the crass accumulation of wealth. Instead, George and his family had an ordered relationship with wealth, always putting the common weal (both of the citizens of Bedford Falls and of the family’s fortunes as a whole) before their own individual gain. Peter Bailey died in the saddle of the Building and Loan he founded for the benefit of others; his son George Bailey sacrificed his health, his own money, and his dreams for the sake of his wife, his family members, and the people of his community; Mary Bailey gave up a life of ease and glamor with suitor Sam Wainwright for the sake of love for him; Harry Bailey put his life on the line as a fighter pilot, gallantly going to the rescue of a helpless troop transport threatened by kamikazes even in the face of two to one odds against himself. The Baileys were heroes, everyday heroes — the kind that you can find in any town anywhere.

Yet both the Baileys and Mr. Potter were capitalists. Both loaned money at interest and pocketed the income derived from same. Why were the Baileys the Good Guys and Potter the Bad Guy? The difference between the ethical capitalism of the Baileys and the amoral capitalism of Potter lies in the way each defined wealth. Mr. Potter defined wealth as power — the ability to control the daily lives of the citizens of Bedford Falls — and in terms of cold cash. This is the definition to which our increasingly “Potterist” society currently holds, and one that dooms its subscribers to a life of bitterness and dissatisfaction. Those who worship wealth and power above all else will in time discover themselves turning into Potters themselves — warped, frustrated old men and women. Thanks to a little heavenly help, however, George Bailey is jarred out of his mistaken belief that money as such has any connection to success; he learns (the hard way!) that real wealth consists not of control (an illusion), money (worthless paper), education (empty status symbol), travel (hedonistic thrill-seeking), or the even the moon (his naive dreams of fame and fortune), but rather of that true wealth which moth and rust doth not corrupt — love. In the end, love of God, of family, and of community is the one thing that truly satisfies, truly lasts — and is the one treasure that the Mr. Potters of this world will never be able to get their greedy hands around.

And that's a Christmas lesson we all should learn.

So as you and your loved ones sit down to watch It’s a Wonderful Life this Christmas season, remember: no man is a failure who has friends. Success lies not in power and money, but in the love you give to others and to God. True charity is the ultimate form of wealth.

Down with Potterism! Long live George Bailey, the richest man in town!

[Campion]

Should have read "religious dogma".

Doesn't help. Insisting you're non-dogmatic about religious dogma is itself a religious dogma.

[sinclair]

“Doesn't help. Insisting you're non-dogmatic about religious dogma is itself a religious dogma. “

OK

[B-Chan]

Me either. In any case, I apologize for insinuating that Sinclair's mom worked in any capacity at a truck stop.

[ArrogantBustard]

Now if Sinclair would apologise for calling you a religious fanatic, we could all just get along.


BTW, aside from the obvious lack of "Catholic" trappings in the Bailey household, I agree with your literary analysis of the film.

[kixx]

The author of this item ignores the clearest evidence of all: Uncle Billy, with the Irish brogue you could cut with a knife. And he drinks, too. Obviously a good Catholic. No one ever explained WHY Uncle Billy talks like a vaudeville Irishman, while his brother Peter talks like Norman Brokenshire.

Uncle Billy was Peter Bailey's brother-in-law.

That may explain it.

If you recall, during the "dream sequence" as I call it, George goes to his mother's boarding house and tells her "I know everybody you know" including her brother Billy.

[Arthur McGowan]

Right. I stand corrected. And George's MOTHER does have a teensy brogue--though Beulah Bondi always talked that way.

[Arthur McGowan]

Except that Mr. Potter refers to George's father and "that idiot brother of his"--i.e., Peter. And if Peter is MRS. Bailey's brother, why is his name Bailey? This is a script error, plain and simple.

[Arthur McGowan]

Except that what I mean is that Mr. Potter refers to Peter Bailey "and that idiot brother of his"--meaning Uncle Billy. Whereas, in the "never been born" segment, Billy is Mrs. Bailey's brother. So, if George hadn't been born, Peter would have been Mrs. Bailey's brother, instead of her husband's brother! This is clearly a more remarkable accomplishment on the part of George than saving his brother's life, or marrying Mary.

[kixx]

That's funny! Good catch on the error. Since it's that time of year I guess I'll go back and watch it again for the umpteenth time. What the heck, you can never get enough of a good thing.

Merry Christmas my friend!

[Arthur McGowan]

Come to think of it: In the alternate universe, does George say to "Ma Bailey," "I know your brother,Billy"? Or does he say "brother-in-law"?

[Jim Cane]

This is clearly a more remarkable accomplishment on the part of George than saving his brother's life, or marrying Mary.

Hey, if God can send angels to Earth, turn back time, and move people back and forth through alternate universes, then He can also play simple genetic pet tricks.