A Bugs Life (1998) - A Marxist Analysis - YouTube

Transscript: The 1998 Movie “A Bug’s life” follows

the story of an ant named Flik.

In the beginning we see him try out his new invention which would allow ants to harvest

food more efficiently.

The reason he tries to increase the output per worker is that the ants are forced to

deliver an offering of food to the grass hoppers each year on top of having to feed themselves.

He get’s shut down by the elites of the ant hill, that being the queen and her advisers.

They claim that his inventing is a waste of time and tell him to just get working again

in order to be able to harvest enough food to satisfy the grass hoppers.

Those people represent conservatives among the proletariat who oppose useful change that

would help the working class.

Real world examples include the fact that many working class people oppose an increased

minimum wage or mandatory vacations.

Unfortunately, an accident causes the food to be lost which causes problems to the ant

hill as the grass hopper named hopper and his gang demand that the ants not only replace

the lost food but also double the amount offered.

The grass hoppers represent the bourgeoisie which profits off the ant’s hard work without

working themselves.

The ants represent the proletariat or working class.

Flik tries to stand up to Hopper which worries him.

Later in the film we can see Hopper explaining that the ants outnumber the grass hoppers

100 to 1 and that they cannot allow ants to get the idea to revolt which is why he forced

the ants to collect more food even though the grass hoppers already have enough.

This mirrors real life in which the bourgeoisie also opposes any change that could help the

working class.

For example they oppose universal healthcare even though it would be cheaper than the current

system.

The reason for this is that any concession given to the people could lead to them questioning

why the bourgeoisie even get’s to take their surplus value in the first place.

Hopper says “The Sun grows the food, the ants collect the food and the grass hoppers

eat the food” which shows his perceived superiority over the proletariat and mirrors

typical social Darwinist ideas about oppression and servitude.

Much how many in real life claim that it’s natural for workers to be subordinate to the

bourgeoisie because hierarchies exist in nature.

Flik then has the idea to recruit warriors to fight for them against the grass hoppers.

He get’s the approval by the elites and goes to the nearest town where he meets some

previous circus insects and confuses them for fighters.

The circus insects themselves just lost their jobs because their boss wanted to force them

to take part in an incredibly life threatening job which they botched so they agree to help

flik.

After Flik returns to the ant hill he is celebrated by the people who wish to be liberated but

haven’t yet realised that they themselves have the power to do it.

After learning that the circus insects aren’t warriors flik devises a clever plan to trick

the grass hoppers into leaving using a fake bird.

The entire proletariat works together to achieve the goal of the defeat of the bourgeoisie

and before long they finish the project.

When the grass hoppers come back they plan to smash any opposition and they even want

to kill the queen to assert their superiority against the ants.

The young ants join flik in his attempt at using the bird to defeat the bourgeoisie.

The grass hoppers are sent into a panic when they see the bird and it almost works.

Unfortunately it later crashes and burns leading to flik confronting hopper face to face.

Hopper says that ants are “mindless soil shovelling losers put on this earth to serve

grass hoppers” further confirming that he truly thinks that his position of power and

superiority over the working class are justified much like real world billionaires tell themselves

that their stealing and exploitation are justified.

Flik replies that Ants are greater than the grass hoppers say and that Grasshoppers need

ants not the other way around.

When Hopper is about to kill Flik to turn him into an example for the others he sees

that the entire working class realised that they are stronger than the grass hoppers say.

The workers unite and fight off the bourgeoisie together.

After the grass hoppers are gone we see the entire working class use the inventions made

by by flik.

In the end of the movie the bourgeoisie is fought off and the working class celebrates

it’s victory and freedom.

In reality at this point there would be a US backed fascist uprising which would destroy

the revolution and install a puppet grass hopper to secure US interests.