Analysis of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

So, I just watched it, and it was funny, of course, and I didn’t take notes or anything, but I noticed a couple of things, so here goes.

1. The Grizwolds as the average family.

Clearly, the family the movie centers on is meant to be perceived as your regular, relatable, American family. In 1989 (when the movie came out) the median family income for the US was 40k (adjusted to 2022, 95k) and the protagonist, Clark Griswold felt entitled to 7.5k (adjusted, 17k) for his Christmas bonus, therefore, if he were “average” he would be expecting almost 1/5 of his yearly salary as a bonus for a fricken in-ground Pool. I’m sure at the time there was some section of the “upper-middle class” (labor aristocracy) that could relate to such a thing, but around the world most people couldn’t dream of having a personal in ground pool, as all they could think about was the exploitation they were going through that allowed imperialists to give their pets such scraps (note a quick search couldn’t give me world stats on median income, just US). Even in the US, today the vast majority of USians wouldn’t dream of buying a whole in-ground Pool from a “Christmas bonus,” partially because inflation has shrunk salaries so much. Later, when Clark finds that the boss hadn’t given him a bonus, and he was skrewed, he was understandably upset, deprived of money he was counting on, just so the capitalist, who sat on his ass could make a bit more of a profit. And I saw a shred of class consciousness in him. But, of course when the boss is kidnapped and brought to the house, he’s nice after all and gives him extra on to the money he was already expecting, making his bonus at least 9k (adjusting to over 21k today). Obviously, Clark is no average worker.

2. Cousin Eddy and classism

Clark’s cousin Eddy is clearly a classic stereotype of a poor white person, or “white trash.” He lives in a crappy RV, wears tacky clothes, has sick kids and pets, will eat nearly anything (but, not a squirrel because of the high cholesterol), and, of course, hasn’t worked in seven years, by choice or stupidity, in other words, a lazy bum (poor by choice). He’s also the butt of many jokes, as he plays the comedic relief so the audience can say “ha! Look how stupid and trashy he is.” One thing I did kind of like was Eddy’s daughter saying how she didn’t believe in Santa, because he hadn’t come the last few years (because her parents are broke), pointing out how only more wealthy families can afford to give their kids tons of crap and get them to believe in a being that gives them gifts because they’ve been “good” during the year.

So, yeah, that’s my thoughts on national lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, funny movie, but don’t think about it too hard.