Doug Geivett
December 18, 2007
In chapter 7 of Faith, Film and Philosophy, Jim Spiegel considers two films, It’s a Wonderful Life and Run Lola Run. What a pairing that is!
Since Christmas is upon us, it’s fitting to take a closer look at the first of these. You may want to view this film with your family or some friends and use the following guide for discussion. (To order the DVD, click here.) Pick the questions that have the most interest. And don’t forget the popcorn!
Released January 7, 1947, It’s a Wonderful Life is a traditional favorite for the holiday season. It was nominated for five Oscars, including Best Actor in a Leading Role (Jimmy Stewart), Best Director (Frank Capra), and Best Picture. On the strength of this film, Frank Capra won the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture Director (1947). In 1949, It’s a Wonderful Life won an award in Spain, in the category of Best Foreign Film.
George Bailey (played by Stewart) has visions of adventure and influence beyond the confines of his hometown, Bedford Falls. But when his father dies, George agrees to manage the family building and loan business. Events in the film take place on Christmas Eve during the Depression. George arranges for his uncle Billy to deposit $8000 for safekeeping at a nearby bank. This money belongs to the citizens of Bedford Falls. Uncle Billy is careless and loses track of the money. A wealthy but greedy competitor, Henry F. Potter, discovers the money, but he doesn’t tell George.
When George learns of the loss, he panics, knowing that he will go to jail for his reckless handling of the life savings of many townspeople. His reputation will be damaged beyond repair. His family will be humiliated and ruined financially. And his dreams of a more significant life will be demolished. Meanwhile, George’s family waits for him to return from work. They’re anxious to begin their Christmas festivities. But when shows up, he’s distracted and belligerent. He leaves suddenly and without explanation. He wanders aimlessly down Main Street and ends up in a bar. George soon reckons that his family and friends will be better off if he kills himself.
At the peak of his desperation, George is visited by his guardian angel, Clarence. Clarence, who hopes to earn his wings, is sent to intervene. In a series of dark vignettes, he shows George what life would have been like in Bedford Falls if George had never been born. The town is controlled by George’s nemesis, the rogue capitalist, Mr. Potter. Under his thumb, “Pottersville” is a scene of unmitigated tragedy and misery. George is horrified. He realizes that his own life has prevented all of this from happening, that his life of sacrificial service to others truly is a wonderful life. He returns home, mysteriously exuberant. Many have gathered to pool their resources and save the Bailey Brothers’ Building and Loan. George’s brother, home from the service, offers a toast to “the richest man in town.”
It’s a Wonderful Life is a powerful portrayal of the difference a virtuous person can make, without even knowing it. It suggests that devotion to others in sacrificial service has cosmic significance. George, who is not a praying man, has all along played the role he was meant to play by a wise and benevolent being. There is much for us to ponder.
Counterfactuals have fascinated historians, philosophers, theologians and novelists. The following items are recommended to those wishing to dip into different kinds of literature on counterfactuals.
Oxford University historian, Niall Ferguson, is a serious proponent of “counterfactual history,” or the historical study of what might have been. And he’s not alone. In a collection of essays called Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals, he and several fellow historians investigate specific events that could easily have turned out differently. They describe tipping points for key events, noting the main alternative pathways that could have been taken at precise points. And they develop plausible accounts of the implications each alternative would have had for subsequent generations.
Executed with serious intent, a wealth of historical knowledge, and an engaging writing style, counterfactual history can deliver the goods: a knowledge of what happened, why it almost didn’t happen, and what difference it makes that it happened. Niall Ferguson and his company of contributors are good at this sort of thing.
So is Robert Cowley, a historian who has assembled several books of essays that explore what might have been if some insignificant feature of a major world event had taken a different turn. What If? Military Historians Imagine What Might Have Been contemplates alternative outcomes of military events going as far back as the Hebrews and the Persians and up through the great wars of the 20th century. Contributors include best-selling authors David McCullough, James McPherson, and Steven Ambrose.
In Cowley’s reprise, More What If? Eminent Historians Imagine What Might Have Been, the authors consider such realistic possibilities as the death of Socrates in battle, an earlier conclusion to World War II, and a clear protestation of the Nazi holocaust by Pope Pius XII. As a Teddy Roosevelt fan, I was especially interested in the question, What if TR had won the presidential election over Woodrow Wilson in 1912? (I was a little disappointed in the answer, but not because it was implausible.) From one author, I learned about a group of ill-equipped, young, and relatively unknown Australian soldiers who made a critical difference to events in the Pacific theatre during World War II. Then there’s Pontius Pilate, who “might” have pardoned Jesus. What if? (The significance of Jesus for history, explored counterfactually, has engaged the interest of other scholars. Yale University Historian, Carlos M. N. Eire, writes about “The Quest for the Counterfactual Jesus: Imagining the West without the Cross,” in the book Unmaking the West: “What-If?” Scenarios That Rewrite World History, edited by Philip E. Tetlock, Richard Ned Lebow, and Geoffrey Parker.)
Want to know what might have happened if the Mayflower had never sailed to America? If William Pitt had influenced Parliament so that the American Revolution had been avoided? If Robert E. Lee had prevailed in the Civil War? If John F. Kennedy had survived to continue his presidency? If the Watergate scandal hadn’t happened? These and a dozen other questions are explored in Cowley’s What Ifs? of American History.
Andrew Roberts has produced his own collection of alternative history. Chapter titles in What Might Have Been: Imaginary History from Twelve Leading Historians read like newspaper headlines: “The Spanish Armada Lands in England”; “The Gunpowder Plot Succeeds”; “Napolean Triumphs in Russia”; “Lenin is Assassinated at the Finland Station.” This book includes a piece by David Frum, former speechwriter for George W. Bush, imagining a “President Gore” response to 9/11. David Frum a “leading historian”? (What if?) Frum’s chapter does have a clever title, “The Chads Fall Off in Florida.” It may be best to think of this book as a mixed bag of serious historical practice and political spoofing.
For a treatment of counterfactuals, human freedom, and divine knowledge, there are two especially good books. William Lane Craig explains the concept of divine “middle knowledge” in The Only Wise God: The Compatibility of Divine Foreknowledge and Human Freedom. This doctrine is developed more fully in Divine Providence, by Thomas P. Flint. See also Jim Spiegel’s chapter in Faith, Film and Philosophy.
Those interested in an introduction to counterfactual conditionals would do well to begin with these two books. The treatments are as accessible as they get, and the philosophical principles examined are applied to issues of major interest to people of faith. If reading these books reveals an itch that requires more vigorous scratching, then you might be ready to sample readings on the philosophical literature described in the next section.
As you might expect, the philosophical treatment of counterfactuals is technical business. The late Harvard University philosopher, David Lewis, is a key figure in the development of the theory of counterfactuals. Lewis went further than most in talking about possible worlds. In his provocative book On the Plurality of Worlds, he develops his account of “modal realism,” the view that possible worlds are real existents, no less real than the world we inhabit. Mastery of the philosophical literature on counterfactuals should begin with Lewis’s book Counterfactuals.
The theory of counterfactuals relates directly to the theory of causation. Three philosophers, John Collins, Ned Hall, and L. A. Paul, have gathered essays on this topic in their 491-page anthology Causation and Counterfactuals. On this topic, see also James Woodward, Making Things Happen: A Theory of Causal Explanation.
There are several types of conditionals (or conditional statements), and each type is philosophically puzzling. Jonathan Bennett treats the full range of conditionals, including counterfactual conditionals, in his book A Philosophical Guide to Conditionals. Two other treatments worthy of careful study include William G. Lycan’s Real Conditionals, and Conditionals, by Michael Woods.
These works in the philosophy of counterfactuals are not for the fainthearted.
Novelists have experimented with writing “alternative history.” The master in this group is Harry Turtledove. In an especially popular series, beginning with his book How Few Remain (1997), Turtledove imagines the aftermath of a Southern victory in the American Civil war. Turtledove has also edited a collection of fourteen short stories in this genre: The Best Alternate History Stories of the 20th Century. In one story, the first atomic bomb is not dropped from the Enola Gay but from another plane called Lucky Strikes. In another story, American history is altered by a Southern victory at Gettysburg.
Another collection of the same kind is Roads Not Taken: Tales of Alternate History, edited by Gardner Dozois. These stories entertain with imaginative alternatives to the fall of Rome, the discovery and colonization of “America,” the conclusion to World War II, and a presidential election in the days of Joseph McCarthy.
There’s nothing quite like Philip K. Dick’s immensely popular The Man in the High Castle. Winner of the Hugo Award (science fiction), this creation imagines America’s loss of World War II, with Japan and Russia dividing the spoils. Dick is beloved by science fiction enthusiasts. His book Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? is the basis for Ridley Scott’s popular movie Blade Runner.
It’s a Wonderful Life is only one of many films that experiment with the world of counterfactuals. Others include:
Speaking of counterfactuals and It’s a Wonderful Life, what if the ending to the movie had been performed by the cast of Saturday Night Live? If you really want to know, click here.
For the MS Word version of this article this link.