When we think of family heirlooms, we think of physical objects that connect us with people in the past we may never have met. Silent witnesses to history, they represent an ongoing legacy that you are a part of. From time to time, you take these heirlooms out of their bejeweled, velvet boxes just to admire them and cherish the stories they hold.The gold watch of Pulp Fiction (1994) is a different matter, though. It’s an heirloom, yes, but it’s anything but ordinary. You don’t hear of it through a proud, nostalgic retelling of a story. It’s revealed through an austere, dark monologue delivered by a stranger. It isn’t simply passed down from generation to generation; it has been smuggled through the hellholes of POW camps.Even within the narrative structure, just like the glowing briefcase, this gold watch is not a mere plot device. This ticking piece of history embodies generations of trauma, the complex nature of legacy, and the irrational choices that define the characters.The Grim LegacyBefore we delve into how this watch drives the narrative, it’s essential to understand the kind of legacy it carries. This will help us understand what it means for Butch to own this heirloom passed down to him through three generations of soldiers.Generations of SacrificeThe watch’s journey begins with Butch Coolidge’s (Bruce Willis) great-grandfather, a soldier in World War I. Right before he left to fight, he purchased this watch in a small shop in Knoxville, Tennessee. Before dying of dysentery during the...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - 4 days ago