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The central idea of the movie Parasite is “Hierarchy”. Through differences between the Kim and the Park family, we can take a peek at the two extreme sites on the pyramid of hierarchy. By what are upper class and the bottom defined? The gap between rich and poor might be the most obvious one. However, this movie tells way more than that.

The French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu proposed the idea of “four kinds of capital” in his book The Forms of Capital (1986). In social institution, a person can obtain resources in diverse ways, which is called “capital”. We’ll further analyze this movie in Bourdieu’s theoretical frame. 

1. Economic capital: 

The first step to tell a person’s social status is to examine his/her economic situation. The Kims lived in a semi-basement underneath the sewers. Drunkards peed into their windows, flies shared their food. They folded pizza boxes for living. On the other hand, the Parks lived in a gorgeous mansion designed by a well-known architect. Everything in the Parks’ life was taken good care of. Chauffeur took them everywhere, housekeeper did their laundry and dishes, tutors taught the children English and art. With enormous income, the rest is not big deal.

↑ the Parks mansion vs the Kims semi-basement

2. Social capital: 

Social capital refers to social ties one can get, which usually are reciprocal relationships. These ties can offer support in economic, mental, or other ways. To put it simply, the more friends you make, the more social capital you have. A person with more social capital gets help more easily. People in high social status are seldom connected to those from the bottom of the hierarchy pyramid, and that’s why the Kims had to pretend to be rich (or decent, at least) so that the Parks would hire them. When it comes to shortage on human resource, the Parks trusted no one but those introduced by “acquaintances”. Also, in the lawn birthday party, all the invited guests were decent-looking, in Ki-woo (the protagonist)’s words, “like they were born in this way.”

3. Cultural capital: 

Knowledge, expertise, speciality (in language, music, art or others), lifestyle…etc. These are categorized into cultural capital, and can be acquired by education. The Parks undoubtedly had a lifestyle to everyone’s admiration. Their education levels are not clearly shown in the movie, yet the children had the best education resources they could get. 

4. Symbolic capital: 

Symbolic capital often refers to one’s reputation and social status. To analyze Symbolic capital is more complicated and abstract, in this article we’ll focus on the other three forms of capital above. 

According to Bourdieu, these forms of capital are fluid: they are not permanent as they can “convert” into other forms. For example, one can use his/her diploma or certification (cultural capital) to apply for a nice position in a large industry and get well-paid (economic capital). With fertile income, he/she may donate to charities and earn a good reputation (symbolic capital). Ironically, the “capital conversion” thing seems to never have happened to those who live underneath sewer. In fact, this situation has a name: “class crystallization”. How do children get well-educated while their families can’t afford college tuition? Plus, without college diploma or expertise certification, how can they find a well-paid job instead of folding pizza boxes for a living? The Kims knew the way. They disguised, they cheated, and they did it very well.

Another way to win the ticket to the upper class is by going abroad, or by showing some cultural attainment from the westerners. When Ki-woo and his sister wanted to persuade Mrs. Park to hire them as tutors, they lied to Mrs. Park that they’d been studying in the US. In addition to this, the Parks talked in simple English during their daily conversations from time to time; even their housekeeper did so. Also in the lawn party, the guest sang opera, played cello, an Indian tent erected in the middle of the circle. If we replace the casts with white people, and tell the audience that the story took place in the US, there is nothing weird. All these implies a fact: western cultural hegemony has been deeply ingrained in Asian societies. In Asian societies, speaking fluent English is good, studying abroad is even better, everyone will admire you for that. 

("I'm Jessica, the only child in family, studied in Chicago")

To summarize, Parasite showed the differences between hierarchies in very delicate and abundant ways. Also, the emotional ebbs and flows were elegantly presented with the intense music and the contrast of warm/cold color tones. I spent every second on the edge of my seat and it was totally worth it.