How The Education of Joshua Chastain Reflects Modern Social and Cultural Challenges

At first glance, The Education of Joshua Chastain might seem like a story rooted in the past since it unfolds within a Mormon community in the 1960s and early 1970s.  In short, Joshua’s coming-of-age and coming-out journey is framed by a world that might appear distant from our own. However, his struggles and the questions he wrestles with remain profoundly relevant today.

Like Joshua, today’s LGBTQ+ youth do not choose their sexual orientation, they discover it. While access to information about sexuality and identity has expanded significantly in the decades since Joshua’s adolescence, many young people still encounter the same obstacles he did. Those raised in deeply religious and conservative communities, particularly within Evangelical or Catholic traditions, often struggle to reconcile their faith and their identity. They ask themselves the same questions Joshua does: How do I come out to myself? How do I tell my family and community? Can I still hold onto my faith, even if my religious tradition tells me that my existence is incompatible with it?

Perhaps the most critical question Joshua faces—one that still resonates today—is how to embrace and affirm his own life as a gay man. Despite shifts in overall societal acceptance, many LGBTQ+ individuals still struggle with internalized shame, external discrimination, and the search for self-worth in an often hostile world. Joshua’s journey reminds us that living authentically is possible and necessary and that a life lived openly and truthfully is worth celebrating.

So, while Joshua’s story may take place over fifty years ago, it is far from outdated. The challenges he faces mirror those still experienced by many, making his resilience and determination all the more inspiring. His story is a testament to the universal and timeless nature of self-discovery, acceptance, and the pursuit of a meaningful life.