Travis the Taxi Driver

Martin Scorscese's Taxi Driver is a dark, depressing movie that takes a dive into the seedy underbelly of New York in the 70's, and telling the story of a jaded ex-marine's descent into madness. The main character, Travis Bickle, is especially odd, because he is a "walking contradiction". He expresses disgust for the scum of New York City, yet he doesn't really hesitate to participate in some of the same disgusting activities, such as sitting in one of the many porno theaters and watching a show. My question would be, is Travis really aware that he is one of the scums that he hates so much? He has no problem with doing some of the same activities that the sleazy New Yorkers of the 70's did, but is he consciously aware of this fact?

It seems that helping Iris get out of prostitution is Travis' twisted way of somehow doing good in his messed up world and giving the girl a childhood that he hadn't gotten the chance to experience while in the Marines. I can't remember what happened to his parents, but the fact that Iris' parents wrote their thanks to him, would only make him feel as though he had found some sort of parental approval that he had sought through his letters to his own parents.

What I found pretty unusual, is the fact that Betsy isn't as vital of a character as I first thought she was. Yes, she was introduced in the first few halves of the movie to demonstrate how disconnected Travis is to what normal couples do with their time, but afterwards, her role wasn't as important to the movie. She was mentioned once or twice after the whole incident between her and Travis in the office, and she showed up once more at the very end. As a romantic interest, I thought she would be constant throughout the movie, but surprisingly she was not. I guess it's sensible though, because in a real life situation, once it was clear after Travis cussed her out that he was mentally unstable, a normal reaction would be to cut off contact with him. In all, this movie is pretty unique, as it shows a gritty society in a way that is truly something else.