As the academic year comes to an end and finals loom in near horizons, the pressure to be one of the greats weighs upon many students’ conscience now more than ever.
Damien Chazelle’s Whiplash depicts Andrew (played by Miles Teller), a promising young drummer, and his gruelling pursuit of greatness. As a student in one of the top music conservatoires, his ambition to be “one of the greats” depicts a student experience familiar to many.
Teller’s character of Andrew is propelled by his ambition to be the absolute best. His sense of worth derives from this. He feels as if those around him are incapable of understanding his strive, even his fellow students. Whilst his treatment of those around him is ugly at times, it is dictated by his own perceptions of his self-worth. In his journey to achieve greatness, he displays a clear fear of being just average. He abandons his friendships and social life to try avoid this fate. This social sacrifice is one that bears quite a resemblance to students’ that are a part of a rigorously competitive environment. Although almost embarrassing to admit, his experience is one not dissimilar to ones of my own. Saying no to going to the pub, shoving off that catch up phone call you have been meaning to have with your mum all week. It all falls into the little nagging voice at the back of your head that these are obstacles to a path of greatness. These sacrifices do not always yield the desired results, seen when Andrew faces setback in his time at Shaffer Conservatory and is left with small numbers of whom he can lean on for support when his ambitious endeavours do not go according to plan.
A combination of Andrew’s own psyche and external pressures influence his behaviour throughout the film. Desire to outperform is consuming yet motivating. Whether that is to beat yourself or your peers, it is a difficult thing to endure. Andrew feels like his accomplishments are undermined by those of others. Whilst this is undoubtedly a negative mindset to have, to shun it as alien to me would be a mistake on my own behalf. The feeling that there is always something more to be accomplished is omnipresent. Whether that be a higher score on an assignment or something to make you stand out to future employers, absolute greatness seems to always be ever so slightly out of reach. This dedication, seen in Teller’s character, whilst at surface level is admirable, is at the bottom line destructive.
Teller’s tutor, Terence Fletcher, is undeniably harsh in his approach to his students, and ultimately nurtures Andrew’s destructive mindset. Although I cannot say I have heard of students having chairs thrown at them by tutors, the pressure to impress is not a foreign concept. Being sat in tutorials and having your contribution clearly not be what your tutor wanted to hear or having critical and not constructive feedback in essays is perhaps a more familiar feeling of defeat. Fletcher justifies his quite unconventional philosophy by saying “There are no two words in the English language more harmful than good job.” At surface level, being told “good job” perhaps is insufficient, one can always be better can they not?
It is important to come to terms with the toxicity a mindset like this can result in. Every once in a while, it is affirming to hear that your effort is worthwhile. It is not healthy to be perfect. It is a necessity to remember that whilst you are capable of greatness, that you are also human. You do not need to entrap yourself in an unhealthy mindset in order to be the best. So go for that pint, go watch that movie and give yourself that break that you deserve. After all, everyone’s tempo is different.
Photo by Brent Ninaber on Unsplash