The film “The Pursuit of Happiness,” directed by Gabrielle Muccino, chronicles the real-life experiences of Chris Gardner who faces many difficult obstacles. He struggles to overcome these obstacles in order to create a better life not only for himself but also for his son after his wife leaves. He finds himself evicted from his home and has some money in his pocket for his own daily expenses due to an unpaid internship. Despite the series of challenges Chris struggles with in his daily life, he continues to demonstrate perseverance and determination in order to achieve his goal of becoming a stockbroker. Mr. Gardner's life can be viewed from a sociological perspective with concepts such as functional analysis theory, social mobility, and symbolic interactionism theory. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Analyzing Chris' Life Struggles Through a Sociological Lens Class division has been part of American culture for several centuries. Society forms social stratification among individuals based on their access to resources and power. This concept is demonstrated in Chris's work environment. In the Dean Witter company we can see that more educated individuals occupy a higher and more important position, for example Jay Twistle who served as the director of the company. Mr. Twistle repeatedly ignores Chris every time they meet. He didn't believe Chris had what it took to be in such a position, namely being good with numbers and people. When they share a taxi ride, Mr. Twistle is impressed by Chris's ability to solve a Rubik's cube in a short time. He finally offers her an interview for Dean Witter's training program. The internship was a route to help Chris have the chance to gain knowledge in a new form of profession with the hope of receiving employment as compensation, otherwise the opportunity would be of no use. The Dean Witter Company served as a functionalist theory because only the best intern would receive a job since the program only chose one out of twenty applicants. In the film, Chris shows the transition from one social class to another. Social mobility is demonstrated by the experiences Chris has from the bottom of the social ladder to his arrival at the top. He went from being homeless to a job where he is economically stable. Social class is based on an individual's efforts. Chris wanted to improve his social class and so he was determined to do whatever it took. An example of his efforts would be when he waited for Mr. Twistle outside the company just to talk to him so he could show his genuine interest in being part of the company. During his internship, he suffered from poverty. There is a scene in the film where he finds his belongings outside his motel room. He has absolutely no money or accommodation. As a result, he becomes desperate, so he goes to a clinic to get a blood test in exchange for money so that he and his son will survive another day. There is a change in social class when he gets a position to work for the company which leads him to be at the top of the ladder overcoming being on the streets and achieving what he wanted by working hard to achieve it. Today he is a millionaire, a businessman with his own investment company “Gardner Rich and Co” and a motivational speaker. The representation of symbolic interactionalism is represented by Chris trying to chase the dream.