“Just Drifting”: Ambivalence in The Graduate

Mike Nichols’ film, The Graduate, is a quiet study of the life of a conflicted young man. Twenty-year-old Benjamin Braddock has just returned to his family’s home on the West Coast after graduation. He is unsure of the direction his life should take. Because of this, he finds himself thrown into situation after situation over which he has no real control. In some cases, his ambivalence leads to a lack of decision. In others, Ben reacts too quickly. The Graduate is a film that highlights how ambivalence affects lives but never offers any conclusion about this fact.

The first instance that offers an example of a character’s ambivalence occurs during Benjamin’s welcome home party. Benjamin clearly performed well at school. His conversations with his parents’ friends show this. There is no reason he shouldn’t be ready to head into a successful career, but it is obvious that Benjamin is not very eager to start. Even before Ben has joined the party, he attempts to voice his concerns to his father. When his father asks what Ben is worried about, Ben responds, “I guess about my future.” His father asks him to elaborate and he continues, “I don’t know...I want it to be...different” (1967). Ben is so unsure of what he wants to do, that he can’t even speak about it confidently. He “guesses” he is unsure about his future. He doesn’t know how, but he does want it to be “different.” This ambivalence about exactly what he should be doing with his life allows for Mrs. Robinson to push him into their affair.

Ben’s ambivalence is also expressed when he converses with his father in their swimming pool. His father approaches and asks what Ben is doing. Ben responds, “Well, I would say that I'm just drifting. Here in the pool” (1967). Ben’s father clarifies that he wants to know if Ben has thought about graduate school, which Ben has not. At this point, Ben’s affair with Mrs. Robinson is underway, and it is proving to be a distraction for Ben so that he does not have to make any decisions about his future. Ben says he is just drifting in the pool, but his ambivalence is leading to his “just drifting” overall. Rather than make any decisions about what he should be doing, he is doing nothing but going along with what is currently happening in his life.

It is also this ambivalence that causes Ben to begin dating Elaine without calling off his affair with Mrs. Robinson. Ben does not want to date Elaine at first, but he does anyway because he has not been able to decide anything for himself. Once he realizes that he has feelings for her, he is unsure of what to do. It is not until Elaine’s father finds out about Ben and Mrs. Robinson’s affair and forces Elaine to marry Carl that Ben is urged to action. He finally decides to make a push for a future he wants and chases Elaine down at the church where she has already married Carl. Because Ben’s ambivalence led to such a late action, the two must run away in order to escape their families and the futures promised for them if they stay. 

Ambivalence, as well as impulse control, plays a role in the final scene, as well. Ben and Elaine board a bus that will hopefully lead them to their new future together. At first, the two seem elated to be running off, but slowly their smiles fade. It is clear that the two are uncertain about whether or not they have made the right decision. This offers a different commentary on ambivalence then does the rest of the film. While throughout the film, ambivalence often leads to inaction, it is in these final scenes where ambivalence causes the characters to act possibly too quickly. In either case, The Graduate gives its audience a look at the role ambivalence plays in the lives of those who encounter it. 

Work Cited

The Graduate. Dir. Mike Nichols. Perf. Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft. 1967. Embassy Pictures, 1999. DVD.