Rational Choice Theory as Illustrated in the film “Bicycle Thieves.”
In the phase of neorealism, films were used as powerful tools that represented the reality of society and its emerging issues in a world that was picking up the pieces after a war. Films portrayed the lives of ordinary people who made up a society that was at the time grappling with sensitive issues such as unemployment, poverty, economic inequality, and crime. Vittorio de Sica’s film, “Ladri di Biciclette” translated as “Bicycle Thieves,” is one such classic film that was used to illustrate the reality of an ordinary family in post-war Rome. Such films are essential instruments that can be used to explain sociological theories through the behavior of people depicted in the movie. This paper will use Vittorio’s film to expound on the sociological theory of rational choice and how it is illustrated in the behavior of the characters in the movie.
The “Bicycle Thieves” follows the story of Antonio, a poor man in Rome who is exhilarated after finally getting a job where he is required to put up movie posters. The only condition that Antonio is required to meet is to have a bicycle that he would use to move around, putting up posters. Antonio had already pawned his bicycle in the tough times when he was unemployed, but his wife comes to his rescue when she pawns all of the family’s bed linen to get money to have the bicycle released. Antonio is happy, and hope for a better life seems to be building up for this low-income family.
Unfortunately, things take a wrong turn when Antonio’s bicycle is stolen on his first day at work. He drops everything and desperately embarks on a journey, accompanied by his little son Bruno, around the streets of Rome trying to find his bike. He walks around, entreating and accusing his son by his side. Wherever they go, viewers are introduced to scenes of poverty similar to Antonio’s.
The father is so distressed about his bike that sometimes he forgets to look out for his son, who is at one point almost run over by a car. The bikes are exhibited to be his most valuable possession. After all, he needs it to provide for his family. His efforts to find his bike prove futile, and at this point, he is so desperate for a bike that he now considers stealing one. He ends up stealing a bicycle but is caught. He is humiliated and ashamed that his son had to watch him stoop to the level of becoming a thief, all to provide for his family.
The rational choice theory asserts that individual behavior is driven by self-interest and the desire to maximize their utility. An individual will always choose the action that leads to the best outcome for himself or herself. The theory of rational choice was introduced by James Coleman, who asserts that social processes and trends can be determined by how an individual rationally chooses a course of action that maximizes their utility. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
Dillion (2020) contends that a person will behave a certain way based on their resources and the marginal utility they get from an action. When deciding which course of action to take, people rationally conduct a cost-benefit analysis and choose the course of action that is the most beneficial at the least cost. From the film “Bicycle Thieves,” Antonio is conflicted. He has to decide whether to steal a bicycle and be able to provide for his family or to uphold his morals, setting an excellent example for his son. In this case, Antonio’s interest is to provide for his family. He had looked for his bicycle everywhere and could not find it. He now sees a lot of bicycles, and he is tempted.
The benefit of stealing a bicycle would be that he would be able to provide for his family. On the other hand, the cost would be getting caught and being jailed. He ends up deciding to steal because the benefit of providing for his family outweighs the cost of getting caught. He could speed off and get away like the thief who stole his bicycle. Although we do not know the background of the thief who stole Antonio’s bicycle, we could assume that a similar motivation to earn a living drove them to steal and now an apparent trend of bicycle thieves with Antonio also attempting to steal a bicycle. Antonio chooses to steal a bicycle because that course of action would maximize his utility by enabling him to achieve his desired outcome of providing for his family.
Gary Becker introduced the concept of human and social capital, asserting that individual and societal behavior is determined by the rate of return of the investments in human capital. Human capital refers to how resourceful people are in terms of health, education, or job training. In the film “Bicycle Thieves,” it is evident that there is little or no investment in human capital from the characters we interact with. A lot of people had gathered to look for jobs on the day that Antonio gets his job. The jobs that were being announced were only jobs that do not require much education, such as putting up posters, laying bricks, or laboring. It implies that those people were not very educated or skilled for them to only be viable for such jobs. The fact that most people were not highly educated could be the reason for driving them to decide to steal because they can barely get employment rationally. Their skills could only get them casual jobs such as the ones mentioned above that were hard to come by. Concerning social capital, although superstitious, Maria believes that knowing the wise woman who prayed for her husband helped him get the job.
Dillon (2020) also argues that scarcity of resources leads to competition for employment and other resources. Consequently, individuals have to maximize the resources that they have to leap the maximum benefits. As aforementioned, there were a lot of people who showed up to wait on jobs the day that Antonio gets a job. Some people were trying to negotiate why they should have gotten the job instead of Antonio. When he says that he did not have a bicycle at the moment, two people shout that they have bicycles and can take up the job right away. It was also the scarcity of resources that led Antonio to walk for miles in the streets of Rome, trying to find his bicycle when it was stolen. He eventually tries to steal one when it was evident that he would not find his. The scarcity of resources causes aggressive competition among people resulting even in the theft.
England (2010) contends that in the effort to pursue individual self-interest, individuals are impinged by structural and cultural constraints. Structural constraints are such as wages and occupational structures, while cultural constraints are such as gender roles in families. In the film “Bicycle Thieves,” at the very beginning of the film, a man fails to get a job because he is listed in the category of bricklayers, which had no opportunities. Yet, he can only be employed in that category. It describes a structural constraint that prevents him from fulfilling his self-interest in getting a job. Also, Antonio hesitates for a long time before stealing a bicycle because his desire to get a bicycle to go back to his job is constrained by the fact that he is expected to set a good example for his son, Bruno, as a father. Individuals do not always fulfill their self-interests due to structural and social constraints.
The theory of rational choice is clearly illustrated in the film “Bicycle Thieves.” Their self-interests often drive an individual’s behavior. People way the costs and benefits of various courses of action and choose the one that maximizes their utility, as was the case for Antonio. This theory is, however, criticized the basis that people are not always rational. Sometimes they behave quite irrationally. For instance, an individual may choose to eat junk food, yet they could have a healthier option that tastes just as good. The rational choice theory might not wholly explain human behavior and social trends, but we cannot dispute that it still explains it to a great extent.