The «Better Life» Social Myth on Screen: A Comparative Analysis of Its Representation in Contemporary Cinema

Annotation

This study is motivated by the growing influence of mass culture on the dissemination of «better life» narratives among audiences. Cinema actively circulates social myths, shaping the value orientations and life strategies of its viewers. The article presents a comparative analysis of the representation of the «better life» social myth in contemporary cinema, drawing on two case studies: Squid Game (South Korea) and Money Heist (Spain). The analysis examines the narrative structures and key symbolic figures of both series. The methodology combines comparative analysis with an examination of the sociocultural and historical contexts of the respective producing countries. It accounts for the economic, political, and cultural realities of South Korea (including the chaebol phenomenon and entrenched structural inequality) and Spain (including traditions of resistance, religiosity, and the ambivalence of national character). The analysis reveals that both series tap into a deep-seated human desire for a radical reversal of fortune, yet construct divergent pathways toward the «better life.» In Squid Game, this pathway is rendered as a a lethal sacrifice undertaken by the desperate and dispossessed, a choice that resonates with the culturally specific sense of resigned hopelessness captured by the concept of han and with the weight of social stigma. In Money Heist, the protagonists pursue the «better life» through systemic rebellion, casting themselves as Robin Hood figures and aestheticising collective defiance. The study concludes that cinema amplifies the affective force of social myth through audience emotional investment, while the specific content of mythological representation is directly conditioned by national mentality and sociohistorical context.

Keywords

• social myth
• the «better life» narrative
• cinema
• mass culture
• sociocultural context
• economic inequality
• national mentality
• ambivalence of mentality
• the Overton window
• value orientations
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Contribution of the authors

Konovalova A. D. – conceptualization of mass culture as a mechanism for the circulation of mythological constructs in contemporary society; Bogacheva A. S. – identification of the sociocultural and historical roots of social myth as represented in cinematic works.

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