An Education: A Study in Sociopathy

I went to see An Education. I was so looking forward to it. It's a tale of a sociopathic charmer and his seduction of a 16 year old honor student in 1960s UK.

I related to it because I, too, had my first romance with a 32 year old when I was 16. He wasn't necessarily completely sociopathic, although he was a drug addict who did his share of lying to both me and his live-in girlfriend (who later became his wife, who then even later became his ex-wife). However, he was always respectful of my wants, and I did nothing beyond kissing him for the 12 years I knew him.

The minute Sarsgaard (sp?) picks up Jenny at the bus stop I KNEW he was a sociopath. My movie companion didn't, sticking to the naive belief that they'd up end happily ever after, even after it comes to light he is a thief and liar.

I won't spoil the end, but it is a great little movie. Because it is based on the actual memoir of Lynn Barber, it rings very true.

It reminds me of one of my absolute favorite movies--in my top five--called Smooth Talk. It came out in 1985 and starred Laura Dern and Treat Williams. It is based on a Joyce Carol Oates story, that I believe is called "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" Such a subtle and beautiful--even though the subject matter is anything but--film. If you can get your hands on a copy, watch it as a companion piece to An Education.

Young women being seduced by older men is not a new theme by any means. I just wasn't sure if this would be more of a Lolita tale or a Smooth Talk one. Clearly it is the latter, but handled exceptionally well and with a relatively happy and uplifting ending.

These two movies should be mandatory watching for teenage girls and could easily be used as an entertaining learning tool. As highlighted in An Education, even the smartest of girls can be waylaid easily by a cunning man with an equally intense pathology.