Dustin's Alpha and Omega

Some friends went out last night with my husband and me to see the latest Dustin Hoffman film entitled Last Chance Harvey. The plot centers around a man at the end of his career (he is about to be fired) and a lonely middle-aged woman who has never found love. Since it is a date movie, all turns out well. Throughout the movie I kept thinking about the circle of life as represented by Hoffman's career choices for the past forty years.

Hoffman first came to the world's attention most likely for his role as Benjamin in the late 1960's. The film was, of course, The Graduate. We all remember the famous scene around the pool when Benjamin is advised to go into plastics for his career. We remember his subsequent angst throughout the movie where he is doing is best to avoid the conformity of the previous generation.

In Last Chance Harvey, the main character, Harvey Shine, struggles with the lost relationship between his daughter and him, his feeling useless and irrelevant in the family after a divorce, his loneliness, his lack of creativity in the job he currently has (writing music for commercials), and his seemingly lost dream to become a jazz pianist.

Hoffman's roles in these movies seem to also reflect the same angst that my generation felt (and feels) so perfectly. My husband and I were in our Alpha 20's when The Graduate was released and students at the University of Mississippi. All the world seemed to lie before us, and we thought the degrees we would earn would serve as a panacea for all of life's problems. We were idealistic about our upcoming careers in public administration and education and believed we could truly make a difference.

Now in the Omega of our lives, we like the Hoffman character in Last Chance Harvey realize life can be full of disappointment. We have lived--as many fellow Americans--with financial struggles, career downsizing in recession, and the ups and downs of our children's lives. We have also lived with many joys--fairly extensive travel opportunities, the free time to be as creative as we choose to be, the birth of three wonderful grandchildren, and unlimited time to enjoy the beauty of nature. All in all life has been good, and we thank Hoffman for showing us in his work how to live.