Name:______________________________________________Period:______Date:_______________
The Truman Show – Viewer’s Guide
Answer each of the following questions and explore how their answers connect to Fahrenheit 451.
1. What two events mark the first pieces of rising action in the film? Explain how they contribute the
film’s plot.
2. What purpose does Meryl’s introduction of the “Chef’s Pal” serve? How does it relate to our society?
3. Explain the significance of Truman’s desire to travel to Fiji. How does it affect the film’s plot and its
characters?
4. Truman’s memory of sailing is introduced using which literary device? ____________________
What purpose does it serve?
5. How does the next use of this device further complicate the plot?
6. What effect does the soundtrack used in each scene have on you as a viewer? How would different
music change your response?
7. Which of the characters genuinely seem to care about Truman? Cite specific evidence that demonstrates
their concern for his wellbeing.
8. What major change occurs in the narration of the film after Truman’s conversation with Marlon on the
edge of the bridge? What is the purpose of this shift?
9. Does Christof genuinely care for Truman? Use specific evidence to support your answer.
10. What is the symbolism suggested by the final scene/conversation of the film? What makes it ironic?
11. What purpose does the final shot of the audience serve? What does it say about us/our society?
12. To what degree does The Truman Show audience deserve blame for Truman’s thirty entrapment in
Seahaven? Would you watch The Truman Show? Why or why not?
Essay Topics – Choose one
Option 1: Trace Truman’s progress as a dynamic character. How does he change from the beginning to the
end? What are the impetuses for that change? What theme does the film suggest as a result of this change?
Option 2: Explore the differences between Truman’s relationship with Meryl and his relationship with
Lauren/Sylvia. What message about love does the director seem to be suggesting?
Option 3: The Truman Show is as much about the character Truman as it is about our society. Identify two
aspects of our society that the film criticizes and explain what singular message they send about the American
Dream.
Option 4: To rebel against the status quo is one of the hardest things any individual can do, especially in the
face of a dominating society. Explore the qualities of the productive rebel (one who is rebelling for the good of
himself as well as society) and explain the theme suggested by these qualities.
Major Themes
The Power of the Media
The Truman Show is a satire, and contains a thinly veiled religious allegory. The aptly-named Christof is a
mysterious character with a God complex who uses his omnipresence to control Truman - both physically and
mentally - for the sake of ratings. Weir and Niccol bring viewers' attention to how far the media is willing to go
to gain an audience. Weir has said that he was editing The Truman Show during Princess Diana's death, and
while he certainly blames the paparazzi who drove her off the road, he asserts that the audience who consumed
her public identity was just as complicit. Similarly, Truman's audiences are complicit in his entrapment, as
Christof (a symbol of the all-powerful media), would be powerless without their attention.
Utopia/Dystopia
Christof created Seahaven Island in his vision of utopia, which Thomas More defined as "a community or a
society possessing highly desirable or perfect qualities." More's version of utopia was an island with only one
exit - just like Seahaven Island. However, More's vision of utopia is only "desirable" if everyone living there
shares the same definition of "perfection." Christof's vision, though, is his alone - he tells Truman that Seahaven
is better than what exists outside it, but Truman has not seen enough to make this decision on his own. Truman
spends the entirety of the film looking for the truth about what exists beyond the horizons of his world, and it
becomes abundantly clear that he will do anything in his power to escape Christof's grasp. Christof might see
himself as the creator of a utopia, but he is really a despot. Therefore, Christof's utopia is Truman's dystopia
(which is the opposite of a utopia - an environment or community that is undesirable or frightening).
The American Dream
In 1931, James Truslow Adams defined the American Dream thusly: "life should be better and richer and fuller
for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement" regardless of social class or
circumstances of birth. Over time, this idealism has appeared in various visual incarnations. However, in the
1950s and 1960s, television sitcoms set in suburbia seemed to embody everything upwardly mobile Americans
were looking for: a house in suburbia, a good job, a car, and relative safety and predictability. Peter Weir
envisioned The Truman Show as a satire, invoking these ubiquitous images to build Truman's glistening cage.
Weir found inspiration for the look of the film by poring over iconic television sitcoms like "Ozzie and Harriet"
and "I Love Lucy." Christof's creation is a protection from the "sick" outside world that has perverted the
American Dream. Weir's film points to the hollowness of the pursuit of that dream - a concept that is just as
unreal as Seahaven Island.
Commercialism
During his "TruTalk" interview, Christof explains that "The Truman Show" is funded by product placement and
that everything on the show is for sale. Weir invokes commercials from the 1950s and 1960s, as characters like
Truman's wife, Meryl and his best friend, Marlon, turn straight to the camera and showcase an item they are
being paid to endorse. This reminds the viewers of The Truman Show and "The Truman Show" that Truman's
entire life is actually a commercial venture; Truman himself has become a commodity under Christof's gaze.
Weir's film posits the world portrayed by commercials, and their promise of that world, is false.
Rebellion
The most valuable asset that Truman possesses is himself. After 29 years of living his entire life on television,
Truman is a priceless entity. Without him, "The Truman Show" would be nothing. When he decides to break
free, though, Truman exercises this power, acting out the ultimate rebellion against his overlord, Christof.
Truman is actually willing to die to get off Seahaven Island, and Christof is forced to confront his creation and
beg him to stay. Just as Eve could not resist the temptation of the apple, Truman cannot quell his curiosity to see
what lies outside of Christof's Eden. The film is a bit of a coming-of-age tale, as Truman's illusions about
himself are shattered. The quest for truth is worth the risk of the unknown.
Authenticity
[The Truman Show] is just as - if not more - relevant as it was when it came out in 1998. With the growing
popularity of the reality television genre and the habitual "over sharing" that comes with access to social media,
it has become increasingly difficult to differentiate what is real about a person and what is a construction
intended for the consumption of an audience, no matter how small. While Truman Burbank has grown up in an
entirely manufactured environment with actors playing the roles of all his friends and family, his reactions and
emotions are real. Christof cites Truman's "authenticity" as the reason that so many people love to watch him,
but it is also the most difficult aspect of the show to maintain. It takes thousands of people and nearly 5,000
hidden cameras in order to give the viewers the authenticity they love in Truman. However, over the course of
the film, Weir makes it clear that even though he lives under surveillance 24/7, Truman's emotions and dreams
are his own. "You never had a camera in my head," Truman tells Christof before leaving Seahaven Island for
the first - and last - time.