


The Grape family deviates from the traditional American family. This realization drives him to burn his home and start a new stage of his life without burdens.
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In loving someone else, Gilbert is able to learn how to love himself. His decision to introduce Becky to Bonnie indicates the love and trust he has in their relationship. When Gilbert falls in love with Becky, we see how his heart opens. Likewise, Amy has opted out of her own culinary aspirations in order to cook and clean for her siblings. Out of love, Gilbert has put his life on hold in order to care for Arnie and maintain a steady job in order to pay his family's bills. Even Bonnie, despite her inability to support her family, is repeatedly shown hugging, kissing, and praising her children. We see how each member of the Grape family loves one another. This film, undoubtedly influenced by the cinéma vérité style, provides a realistic depiction of love. Gilbert's decision in the film's closing scene indicates the actualization of his "freeing" ideas. In their numerous discussions over the course of the week, Gilbert begins to see his life in Endora differently and find freedom in his own isolated community. Gilbert understands that fostering a relationship with Becky can allow him to share in her sense of freedom. She possesses a worldliness and an excitement for life that he has always craved but never been able to act upon. When Gilbert meets Becky, he begins to understand that she personifies freedom. In this way, Endora's vast landscape is, ironically, Gilbert's trap. The opening scene of the campers driving through Endora reveals that Gilbert Grape desires freedom but is ultimately deprived of it. Once Becky comes to town, the Grape family is pushed to re-evaluate their functionality, their domestic duties, and their own mental health statuses in order to preserve their longevity. They are still young, and it is evident that their emotional development has been stunted because they have been expected to behave like adults.

However, it becomes clear that each family member is burdened by their responsibilities. She cooks and cleans the family's home, and she even assists in its many repairs. Amy, Gilbert's older sister, assumes the maternal role. In addition to being Arnie's caregiver, Gilbert is expected to hold a steady job in order to provide for the family financially. After his father's premature death, Gilbert has assumed the responsibility of caring for Arnie, his developmentally delayed younger brother. Throughout the film, we see that Arnie is attached to Gilbert's side.
