Groundhog Day Philosophy 101

Nietzsche offers the idea of eternal recurrence as a thought experiment: if you were to discover that your life was to be eternally repeated, would you consider it a gift or a curse? If you’ve enjoyed an exciting and joyful life, then this sounds like a wonderful reality. But if you haven’t, eternal recurrence may sound like a miserable trap. Nietzsche suggests that a person’s reaction to this idea is a test of their attitude towards life and ability to become the best version of themselves. In Groundhog Day, it is Phil Connors who finds himself in a form of eternal recurrence, repeating each day over and over again. The question is whether he is able to learn valuable lessons about his approach to life as a result of his eternally recurring state.

Aristotle claimed that the only people who can truly experience happiness are virtuous people, and that virtue does not come to us naturally, but instead by adopting good habits. In doing good things we become good, and in doing bad things we become bad, and it is our decision which path to choose. Nature gives us the capacity to receive virtue and only by practising it can we become truly happy. In Phil Connors we see an example of a man who seemingly makes the choice to be a bad person at every turn — to see the worst in people, to treat people badly — and as he slowly begins to change his behaviours, the audience has the opportunity to see his evolution play out in true Aristotelian fashion.

Many religious scholars consider Groundhog Day as ‘an underground Buddhist classic’ (Chicago News, University of Chicago) for its depiction of the cycle of death and rebirth. Mirroring Nietzsche’s idea of eternal recurrence, having repeated chances at life, or being continually reborn, is also a Buddhist belief. In some Indian religions, this cycle is known as samsara and is not something positive but instead a problem to break free from. Much like the Aristotelian idea of doing good to be good, Buddhism also presents the notion of karma and teaches that it plays a vital role in our lives. We have the ability to transform karma through positive actions, which can, in turn, result in positive rebirth. In Groundhog Day, Phil Connors is given over an estimated 10,000 days to transform his karma, eventually breaking free by making a series of good choices and overcoming his ignorance and ego.