An Education on Life, Love, and the Pursuit of Happiness

When I was 16 years old, I was a sophomore at a Catholic high school in Orange County and my primary concern was remembering to look out for cross-walking pedestrians when making a right-hand turn so that I wouldn't fail my driving test (I still forget to look out for pedestrians from time to time - oops!).  My secondary concern was not-so patiently waiting for some immature, albeit cute, high school boy to ask me to my first high school Homecoming dance (which I later regretted as said immature high school boy ditched me the moment we stepped onto the dance floor).  And my last concern was how in the world I was going to pull an all-nighter to finish my religion project (my fault entirely as I was quite the procrastinator back in the day... unfortunately I still am).  None of my concerns included achieving high enough grades to be considered an applicant for Oxford University and they certainly didn't include wondering whether or not my father would allow me to accompany my 35 year old boyfriend on a trip to Paris.  However, that is exactly the two concerns of our heroine, Jenny (captivatingly played by Carey Mulligan) in An Education.

Jenny, a 16 year old schoolgirl in early-1960s suburban London, falls for a charming and mysterious older man (Peter Sarsgaard) and soon finds herself in over her head socially and emotionally.  Jenny is at a crossroad having to choose between her thirst for knowledge and her desire to be cultured.  Her two choices raise this question: What should be valued more? An education from textbooks and classroom lectures or an education from living life properly (in Jenny's case enriching her life with art, poetry, jazz music, traveling, and fine dining)?  When David Goldman (Sarsgaard) introduces her to this new world, Jenny has a decision to make: College or Culture?  

Which would you choose, dear reader, when both options are presented to you on a silver platter?  Would you choose the responsible, long-term investment of a school-bound education or would you choose the short-term gratification of fulfilling your passions?

In hindsight, having a college degree under my belt, I'm proud that I made the decision to seek out a higher education.  On the other hand, I graduated almost three years ago and I'm unemployed so a romantic weekend get-a-way to Paris and sipping champagne and munching caviar at a jazz nightclub doesn't sound so bad.  In fact, if I'm really honest, it sounds downright tasty and there's a good chance I'd give my left arm to be doing that right now!