Anybody else felt like Bobby Dupea?

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This is one of the best threads that I have ever read here at IMDb. I am impressed with the way that many people have been willing to share their feelings, so I now want to contribute here, too.

The first time I saw "Five Easy Pieces," it was 1970 and I had been out of college for 4 years. I was working in the arts as a teacher and was newly married to a man like Bobby, in that he was never able to achieve what his upwardly-mobile parents had expected of him. My husband was not as openly angry and volatile as Bobby; he was more withdrawn but still was unable to find his path, so I felt great empathy toward him. Back at that time I found both Bobby and my husband very attractive and appealing, so I was sure that my outgoing personality was just what they both needed! Now I can see that I was very Rayette-needy at that time, but I definitely didn't recognize it then. In fact, I couldn't stand Rayette in this movie when I first saw it.

Perhaps I viewed it a time or two after 1970, but I watched it half-heartedly, not really liking it but still so attracted to Bobby ~~ again with the subconscious idea that I'd be the person who could help him find his way. That notion was taken to extremes in the late '70s/early '80s. After my divorce from my first husband, I dated a guy who came from a very wealthy family, looked a lot like a young Jack Nicholson, and treated me much like Bobby treated Rayette. This young man had a self-made millionaire father, two sisters who married multi-millionaires, and felt that he couldn't compete with any of them ~~ so I threw away four years of my life trying to help him realize his potential. He was mean and quite volatile, and for awhile I thought that I couldn't live without him.

But I never realized how those years of my life mirrored "Five Easy Pieces" until TCM showed it tonight and I watched it intently for the first time in many years. The scenes in the movie where Rayette showed up on the island suddenly reminded me of the times that I was invited to visit the wealthy family for special occasions ~~ then my date would ignore me the entire time that I was there. During this viewing I finally recognized the needy Rayette that I used to be, and also recognized the similarities between the character of Bobby and the guys that I was hopelessly addicted to when I was so much younger.

My present husband also came from a cultured and musical family, and we have musical and artistic interests in common, but there wasn't a big "wealth gap" or "education gap" between us. We met in 1983 and have been together ever since. He didn't become the professional musician that both of his parents were, but he is most definitely not like Bobby, and I am now more like Catherine emotionally than Rayette. So for those of you who think that feeling like Bobby or Rayette leads to a hopeless life, hang in there! Good changes can happen in anyone's life.

Doesn't everyone feel alienated from the world now and again?

I spent most of my childhood traveling to different countries, as my dad had a job must like Bobby's (working on rigs, but higher paying). I became a "third culture" kid, so I never really had a hometown or heritage, and I don't subscribe to any nationality. The most complicated question someone could ask me would be where I was from. As a result, I can't understand the motivation to live in one place and never move from your own front door. I find the world much too interesting and life too short to hang up my hat in one place. I've made friends from all over, and they're very different. One was part of a political/diplomat family from Ukraine, going to university in England. Another is from a small mining town in Pennsylvania and works as a local cook. They're both good friends of mine.

I guess my point is, to me that all people are genuinely the same. To me, it's not class, money or education that makes you. It's whether or not I could have a beer with you and tell a joke. Which is why it hurts me to see Bobby hurt those people closest to him in the film, but I feel like he can't be blamed entirely. He's just a misanthrope who was stunted by expectations. I am just glad that I grew up with a family who accepted me for who I am.

Limit of the Willing Suspension of Disbelief: directly proportional to its awesomeness.

Yes - absolutely! That's why I chose Bobby's name for my site ID.

I know well the feeling of being both alienated and empathetic toward the more-educated and/or upper classes, and toward the less-educated and/or lower-classes. May of us exist in sort a perpetual mezzanine level in life, in which were are never fully a part of any group. This existence gives us a detachment that is both constructive and destructive - just like Bobby.

My real name is Jeff

Frankly, I am completely unable to fathom the guy. It is so far away from what I feel, that I really need to consciously think of the bits of decency that came out of him here and there in order to be able to develop some empathy for the guy.

Yes, in many ways. It is quite long time ago I've seen a movie, where I could identify with a character as in Five Easy Pieces. A really fantastic and deep movie, I think.

My story is in some ways similar to the story of Bobby. I used to work full time as a classical pianist for many years and had a bachelor degree. Later I changed career and got into journalism. Now I'm 25 years old and I'm studying my second bachelor in journalism/PR.

Changing from the world of fine arts to the world of modern media is truly a challenge. I occasionally feel alienated in both worlds. And sometimes I feel the norms of society is preventing me from trying to unite both worlds, as it today seems to be important to be goal oriented, efficient and very clear cut so to say when it comes to choosing education. My change of career sometimes even gets perceived as lack of ambition. It really p***** me off when I hear that!

For me though, I somehow managed to unite both worlds (of course there is some difference from working in the media vs. manual labour). I still play concerts occasionally, but it is rare that I have time. However I've accepted the comprise. I've divided my life in two equal parts. The work part that provides money and security, and the music part that makes life feel special and where I can really express myself in ways, words can't.

But still sometimes the feeling of alienation and lack of understanding can be difficult. I've had times where I also tried to escape. Travelling around, trying to find new perspectives, etc. but often it has not taken long before it gets trivial and empty too. As the everlasting paradox of Hedonism.

For me, music never gets empty though.

But if I had the same feeling like Bobby, that I'd failed both in music and the alternate branch, I'd chosen, then I'd be in deep trouble. And that's what for me is so tragic about Bobby's story.

Great thread. Just shows how much this film has touched people. It's a slow burn of a movie that really hits hard at the end.