Excerpt: /364/ The Eternal Sunshine of the Bourgeoisie

On satire of the bourgeoisie.

 

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We discuss Luis Buñuel's "deranged masterpiece" from 1972, The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, and debate the social ritual of dinner, and why the guests in the film never get to eat theirs.

 

How does this early 70s surrealist film – which in many ways set the template for cinematic satires of the bourgeoisie – compare to more recent portrayals such as The Menu or Triangle of Sadness? Ultimately, who are the bourgeoisie and do they still exist, in a world of distributed ownership and managerialism?

 

Readings:

• ‘A deranged masterpiece’: why you should watch The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, Luke Buckmaster, The Guardian
• What Have the Bourgeoisie Done for us Lately?, Stephan Bertram-Lee, Sublation
• A Brief History of the Bourgeoisie, or We Are All Bourgeois Now, David Polansky, Strange Frequencies
• The Bourgeois(ie) as Concept and Reality, Immanuel Wallerstein, New Left Review