Captain Fantastic demonstrates an uplifting story of an eccentric father who adopts an unorthodox belief or people may call it “hippie philosophy” in order to nurture his 6 kids in a forest of Pacific Northwest, America.
Long story short, the father raises his kids with ideological system of rejecting established society and cultural values. Therefore his kids are all home schooled and necessarily become socially backward. But despite that fact, his kids become very knowledgeable, smart and observant. They have very high literacy level unlike any american kids who are attached to constant visual stimulation of their cellphones, these kids always hold up a book to read instead.
The father also trains his kids to practice survivalism. Hence, every morning the father packs the day with outdoor and very dangerous trainings in the uninhabited wilderness where they live such as rock climbing and hunting a living deer with arrows for instance.
While on the other side, the mother doesn’t really play a role in the movie cause she suffers manic depression or bipolar. Due to the serious mental illness, the mother has been associated for long time with suicidal thoughts. And eventually, while she’s getting the medical treatment, she commits suicide.
I think this movie’s enjoyable and i absolutely dig it. And after walking you through the story above, I’m eager to tell the pros and cons of the father’s parenting style on education preference to his children. Let’s get cracking!
Fairy Tales are Perceived as Harmful for Children: The kids don’t celebrate Christmas. The kids don’t fall for idea of fictional elf, such imaginary and fairy tales-themed story don’t lure them. On this particular idea, i obviously disagree, i think fairy tales are good for children, it’s beneficial to develop their morals, boost creativity and to have a dream as they grow up. But the father’s perspective is a far cry from that, he thinks that happy ever after stories are harmful and make the children unprepared for the real world.
The Idea of Homeschooling: Even though all the kids are homes-schooled, they keep up with the academic insights very remarkably. They learn so many things from the books that the father tell them to read. Not solely reading, the father also always sorts out to have the sesh criticizing about the moral and important bottom lines that the book conveys.
This part of the movie has told me that we actually can use whatever resource that is accessible to acquire knowledge since in this era of tech, people crave instant gratification or result – as the consequence, conventional reference like books seems to be abandoned and we that makes us least skillful in literacy development.
But on the other side, I’m not a pro of home schooling cause i think going to real school is an ideal way for self-development in attaining education cause the kids are able to learn how to make friend, actively get involved in a community, practice problem solving, public speaking and in the end have a hand in something.
Though the father considerably used to eschewed formal academic degrees, but he finally realizes the kids are unprepared for the real world. Hence, he’s eventually open to changes and has reasons to be broadminded. The eldest son who secretly managed to get accepted to Ivy League school is finally allowed to persue his dreams – to attain formal education in college.