Chariot of Fire- Motivation

Chariots of fires follows two driven individuals who are compelled to success yet are motivated by entirely different reasons. Motivation explains how certain behaviour are started, directed and continued to meet the needs of the individual. We can see that these men’s needs exceed expectations as they strive to accomplish a near impossible goal.

Taking a look at first at Harold Abrahams, we can see that his driving force is succeeding in the face of adversity. Under Jewish decent, Abrahams was put under a lot of hardships as he had to work twice as hard to prove that he was indeed a representative of England and what it has to offer. Although the scrutiny Abrahams suffered from was subtle it was constantly present but it only leads to him performing even better to prove that he is not just an English man but one to be admired. After losing for the first time we can see that Abrahams starts to develop an external locus of control as he contemplates quitting due to the belief that he has done everything in his power yet is still not good enough. Until he is able to see that more work and drive was required to justify his arrogant attitude.

Eric Liddell on the other hand is devout to his religion and has the belief that god made him fast therefore he should use his talent. We can see that there is a lot more to this than religion as winning feels good to everyone but when confronted with this issue of testing his faith with his individual desires we can see that he keeps a firm stance towards his religion. Even after winning he doesn’t stop to cherish his achievement with the whole world but continues his work as a missionary in China. We can see that his overall motivation lies with the words of god as opposed to fulfilling his own desires.

Both individual are intrinsically motivated as they are not driven for any external rewards but to fulfil their inner needs for achievement whether it is running and/or religion.  We can see that the expectancy-value theory most applies here as the strong beliefs and values of both individuals exceed that of most others and fulfilling their needs.

Schindler’s List

Nazi Germany was run through the rule of fear, as many atrocities were committed as the lure of power appears to become to overpowering in certain situations. The use of Jew as scapegoat’s for Germany’s shortcomings after WWI lead them to slave like conditions where shooting one would be used as incentive to make the others work faster.

Obedience and compliance are recurring themes throughout this time period as many German soldiers would exploit their power in cruel ways. Amon Goeth is the perfect example as he expects obedience, he expects the Jews to act upon his direct orders and the expectations he requires otherwise he will make an example out of the individual. This begs to question how an individual became so sinister and when did this take place. Phillip Zimbardo’s prison experiment helps explain how certain roles people are placed in make them express behaviours they normally would not express. In his experiment the participants who had the role of prison guards expressed means of violence and punishment when their sense of power was threated. This can directly apply to the case of Amon Goeth through the countless aimless murders throughout the film.

Amon Goeth was only one of many German soldiers who expressed the same displaced hatred towards the Jews and peformed countless acts of cruelty. However some soldiers were just carrying out orders. Stanley Milgram conducted an experiment that shows that the patients will electrocute others under the direct command of an authority figure. In the experiment the electric shocks increased gradually until they eventually became lethal. This too can be related to the time as the persecution of Jew happened on incremental levels, starting with banning from owning a business and ending with their death.

We can see that not all Germans felt the same way about the Jews as Oskar Schindler was one of the few who saw an opportunity to create a business through the use of the new work force to fulfil his selfish desires. However as the story proceeds we can see that Oskar starts to witness what happens to the Jews first hand, as the use of colour was first used when the SS started to brutally round up the Jews and force them into labour camps. The thought that he was providing some sort of a refuge against the atrocities also helped him realize he was doing a little bit of good.

Self-Actualizing Will Hunting

Will Hunting has a truly unique gift of eidetic memory (also known as photographic memory) giving him access to his all his visual memories for a lot longer than our short-term memories can sustain, in his case his memory appears to be lifelong. However intelligent this makes him it does have a down side as he can remember even the most traumatic experiences he wishes to forget and those that keep on leading him into trouble, in turn preventing him from truly growing. In order to avoid being convicted Will was sent to a series of psychiatrist who applied their schools of thought’s treatment on Will, however Will’s knowledge in all these areas lead him to toy with the professional’s acts of reaching out to Will. A last resort by a psychology school teacher, Sean Maguire, takes an unconventional approach by trying to form a relationship with his patient.

In this case self-disclosure is used on Sean’s side, as well as meeting outside of therapy, aggression and forming emotional connections with the client, all of which is viewed to be unethical between the therapist-patient relationships. These behaviours are somewhat shunned upon as they can in some cases lead to transference, where the patients start to unconsciously relate the feelings and attitudes of significant others on to the therapist. In Will’s case we can see that a more unconventional approach is required, perhaps why this approach was taken by Sean. Looking at Sean Self-disclosing to Will we can see that it had a disclosure reciprocity effect, as Sean reveals something about himself Will starts to do the same. As we get to know Will more we can start to see that perhaps all he really does require is a true friend who can listen and understand him and vice versa.

This form of therapy is most similar to person-centered therapy, as it main focus is on the patient’s growth. Taking an arbitrary look at Will’s growth on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs we can see that Will is unable to develop past the belongingness and love needs, as his past had no positive significant others preventing him from reaching out to others. We can see that due to this lack of development in interferes with his subsequent needs of self-esteem and lack of application of his cognitive abilities in turn preventing him from self-actualizing. Until he’s gotta see about a girl.

When a man loves a woman- road to recovery

We can see that Alice Green is perhaps not as happy with life as she made out to be as her Husband Michael only became aware of her issue with Alcohol when the situation became too extreme. After Alice came back from rehabilitation we can see that she is still in a very fragile state and remains unsure about many things. Alcoholism is a lifelong disease that one must battle against every day, something that Michael fails to see, “let’s get you better so it will never happen again”, implying that it can be completely cured. The relationship with Michael does not improve even though he seems to be working round the clock to make her get better so she can come back to their normal life.  This is perhaps the reason why Alice asks for a separation, as Michael does not see that the reason why she got involved with alcohol in the first place was due to the constraints of their normal life and now that she is recovering Michael restricts her from having any room to grow and rebuild what she had lost. In many cases people on the road to recovery tend to feel depressed and lonely hence why support groups like AA meetings and sponsors are used to help people in Alice’s and Michael’s situation. They provide constant support in the form of trusting relationships where people truly listen to what each other has to say with minimal judgment, which in turn provides comfort and understanding through empathy. However this can only work if the individuals are responsive to the change that must take place in order to understand the ups and downs of recovery. It is important to understand both the disorder and the process of recovery in order to help the individual work their way back into their own lives. Even with this in mind many people fall back into the bad habbits even with the best of help.

http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/Controversies/The-Road-to-Recovery.html

Shine- David Helfgott

Shine follows the story of David Helfgott who suffers from schizophrenia. as the movie progressed we can see that David started off as a healthy young boy but as he grow older his ticks start to become more apparent until it became full blown after fainting on stage. Looking at the DSM-IV criteria of schizophrenia we can start to determine where in the spectrum David lays. From the characteristic symptoms we can gather that he has disorganized speech as many of the times he brings up moments from the past that are irrelevant to the situation, not to mention the speed at which he dished out his close to incoherent babbles. The second characteristic symptom, which is required to make a diagnosis, is David’s disorganized which can be seen by the state of the house when he is left alone. From the next criteria, social/occupational dysfunction, David varies as he appears to be a savant as he has profound musical skills with the piano which in turn have led to his occupation and on the other side we can see that he is even quite social as he continuously makes an effort to meet new people, but help is also required to help him in other social situation as he also has the tendency to get naked in public.  Looking at the duration we can see that this is lifelong for David as he will never be the same as he was before the incident. Taking a closer look at the type of schizophrenia we can see that his symptoms are most similar to those who suffer from disorganized type, as he suffers from disorganized speech and behaviour as well as inappropriate affect. Regardless of his disorder, David still seems to have a large effect on his family as well as society as he continued to play piano for thousands of people.

David Helfgott

Benny, Joon & Sam

The story follows a mentally unstable individual, Joon, who has grown up with her brother, Benny, who has taken care of her since she they were young as their parents were involved in an accident which unfortunately cost them their lives. With this in mind we have to consider the relationship in which Benny and Joon endure. Throughout the film we can see that Joon faces a series of problems that can be seen as slightly maladaptive under certain situations as her anxiety gets the better of her.  Benny feels responsible for his sister making him reroute his life around her in order to prevent any of her outburst, which may not be considered dangerous but as many individuals do not understand her situation this leaves Benny weary of her whereabouts and compelled for Joon to carry out her routines. In a sense Benny has got complete control over Joon’s life as he believes he is responsible for keeping her safe and restricting her decisions to a routine basis. This leaves benny in a dilemma as under professional guidance, as Joon’s doctor request that she’d be sent to a group home yet Benny is not completely sold on the idea until Sam comes into the picture.

Sam too is truly eccentric who ends up in both Joon’s and Benny’s lives. With his love for film there doesn’t seem to be room for much else which in turn makes him appear quite simple, from his lack of writing to his creative ways of preparing food, many individuals perceive that something is wrong with him. However, his simplicity leads him not to perceive Joon as someone to be weary of but instead someone who understands him and vice versa. As Sam starts to become more and more part of the family we can see that the calls that used to interrupt Benny from his work, the errands that he used to run and other behaviours that were considered maladaptive not just for Joon but also effected Benny subsided. The relationship sparked between Joon and Sam yet Joon felt the need to tell Benny about the newly formed relationship.

Benny was outraged when Sam told him as he saw this as something that should have never happened perhaps due to both Sam and Joon’s conditions, the lack of understanding of the matter and the feeling of being taken advantage of. His outburst lead to Joon running off with Sam which in turn lead to Joon acting out on the bus and then taken to the group home for supervision.  With this in mind perhaps it is not just one individual needed in Joon’s life but a number of them who truly understand her. If Sam was enough for her, the anxiety would have not got the better of her as she was running away and if Benny was enough then Joon would have never ran off in the first place. it is not just the people who are effecting her that make her change for the best but also her effects on others so perhaps they can understand that the little things should not be taken for granted, such as family.

Strictly Ballroom- the power of the community

Scott Hastings is a young dancer looking for his place to in the dancing community yet the limitations put forth by the Pan-Pacific Grand Prix Dancing Championships prevents him from doing so. Regardless of the consequences we can see that when Scott chooses to dance his own steps, he not only lost, but his family and dancing partner crumble around him. All these externalities put pressure on Scott to conform to the given steps that were danced within the previous years. This shows a form of power from the Dancing Championships as it does not let individuals express themselves through their own dance movements let alone the original dances.

As dance revolves around the freedom to express oneself the limitations put forth by the community prevents such actions of expression. This becomes obvious to Scott as he performs the Dancing Championships take of the Pasodoble to a Spanish Family who laughs in his face. Not knowing why he follows the family to the back where they performance of the original Pasodoble which captivated Scott. The daughter, Fran also helped Scott come to the realization as she is the only individual who wants to dance Scott’s steps, even though they prevented him from winning. Even with the knowledge of losing Scott still chooses to re-enter the Dancing Championship dancing against the given steps until his “family secret” is revealed.

The influence of the Dancing Championship is done through coercive power which suppresses freewill though the act of fear. The matter of dance is so large within the Hastings family that loosing would only bring back the memory of what Scott’s parents nearly had as opposed to what they should have had. We find out that Scott’s mother didn’t want to dance with the father as he too danced his own steps which was constantly degraded and ignored but could have prevented this cycle of power back then. Only then can they have the freedom to truly dance.

Cry Freedom

The story based on real events begins with two individuals living on the same land yet who lived in two different worlds. The first being Donald Woods a white liberal and editor who gets the best out of the Apartheid regime. This was an almost perfect world with clean streets, beautiful beaches and luxury cars to name a few, but this is just a face that disguises the true nature of South Africa and the separation, discrimination and prejudices. Donald sees these imperfections yet believes that the liberals are actually doing good towards the blacks as they are somewhat integrated into their society as opposed to living in squalor on the outskirts of town, where few whites other than enforcement venture. However obvious the situation may be to South Africans let alone the world, Donald Woods and many white South Africans within that time justified that any stand against the integration of blacks was seen as a racist notion of not wanting to be part of society. This contradiction in belief and fact is known a cognitive dissonance, this is where individuals will change beliefs, attitudes or actions to relieve tension between two contradicting ideas. This leads to such justifications that much of the history of South Africa was created by the whites and the belief they are the saviours of the land as they prevent such things as tribal wars and have now created a society in which they thrive.

This brings us to Steve Biko’s world. He is part of the Black Consciousness which stands against the regime as it does not truly support a free South Africa. These worlds are not just separated by beliefs but the laws and regulations that support the “white man’s world”, a world where blacks are made to feel inferior. The inferiority comes through working cheap labour then leaving the “white man’s streets” at designated times and forced back out to the crime infested shanty towns where they linger in hopes of a chance to survive. Some face the same sort of dissonance as Biko put it “the genius of it is that you started convince most of us of it to”, referring to the white man’s South Africa. Everything taught is done through the white curriculum with lack of emphasis on many important black figures that were considered federal offenders such as Nelson Mandela. Even the language taught was that of the white population. This is why many feel inferior as they had to grow up in this world that contradicts the freedom it portrays.

It is not all black and white however, as many individuals such as Donald Woods came to realize that this should indeed not be tolerated, even to the extent of putting his and his family’s lives in danger. Steve Biko showed Donald the way he saw South Africa, not just with all the poverty and atrocities but also the people and the drive they had against the system that so clearly puts them down, the love they hold for one another and respect to those who want to better South Africa not just for one race but for everyone, even with all the resentment. After Biko’s murder Donald comes to the consensus that he must do whatever is in his power to do what he can to put a stop to apartheid, this is when Donald truly understands what it is like to be in Biko’s situation. Although Donald was able to publish his book, it took a lot more than just their words to open the world’s eyes to this travesty that happened in such recent years.

Running on Empty- Family Dynamics

Taking a look at the Pope family we can see that they did not go through the same family crises that most families go through. This could perhaps be due to the parents running away from their past, putting the family in an extraordinary situation which in turn creates a different way to cope. We can see that the older son, Danny, (played by River Phoenix) who has grown up running away from his parents past life seems to be able to cope as he does not know anything else. Only when he is confronted with a decision that would bring a stop to the running, we as the audience start to see that he isn’t as composed as his exterior makes him out to be. Like most teenagers the issue of going to university arises but in Danny’s case this decision is truly life changing as if he went to university he would never be able to see his family again.

Danny also finds a romantic interest, Lorna Phillips (played by Martha Plimpton) and comparing the two families we can see that they can’t be more different.  In Lorna’s case, which is most common in most teens of that age, we can see that she is very private about her life towards her parents and feels that they do not truly understand her; this is shown by her constant disputes against her farther.  In Danny’s case his connection with his family is very warm and loving, as they show understanding towards each other due to the situation that they are in.  The closeness of the family and the support that they provide each other makes Danny’s decision to go to university is more perplexing then it is for most teenagers.  Danny’s father engrained that “we are only as strong as a weakest unit”, making Danny believe that he needed them in order for them to continue the life that they are living. This was opposed to the family needing Danny, which is similar to most families, the classic empty nest syndrome.

Lorna was a predominant figure that helps Danny see that he should not be held back by the regrettable decision made by his parents. Danny liking towards Lorna leads him to disclose his true feelings about his given situation and the confusion that follows, yet Lorna stays by his side making him feel less alone given her understanding.  This gave Danny a bit more security, as well as his acceptance to Julliard but this also made his decision more confusing. When Danny made up his mind to stay, bringing it up to his dad was a different situation altogether. As the family was picking up to run again Danny brings up the topic to his father, which was not new for him as his wife had already made arrangements for his going to university. His father however is torn by the thought of losing his son as seeing him again would be near impossible. Refusing his son’s choice led Danny to accept the choice as this only confirmed his place needed within the family. Only before they leave Danny’s father lets him go so he can truly live his own life without the consequences put forth because of the parents past. As Danny is left behind and his family drives off, we the audience get a sense of relief and sadness at the same time as this choice although common to most families the situation of potentially never seeing ones family again is truly much harder to determine the outcome.

Dr. Seyers Awakenings

The movie begins with an over achieving boy named Leonard (Robert Deniro) who didn’t stray too far from the norms, as he had friends, hobbies and many other activities young boys engage in. However, Leonard fell victim to a chronic disorder which caused muscle to become catatonic due to deficiencies within the brain causing him to be unresponsive to the world around him. This, however disheartening, gave way to a peculiar relationship between Leonard and the researcher,  Dr. Malcolm Sayer (Robin Williams), who was assigned to the ward 30 years after Leonard fell into his catatonic state. This relationship would in turn prove to teach Dr. Sayer more than anyone would have expected.

Dr. Sayers area of expertise revolve around the area of research and lacks the human interactions required by  most doctors, however due to many qualities such as being quite nurturing, shown through his delicate care with his plants, and his inability not to give up in the face of adversity showed that he too can impact other’s lives. Dr. Sayer belief that many of the patients still have the capability to recover from this affliction lead to the recognition of encephalitis as the cause of many of the catatonic patients which lead to the introduction of the L-DOPA drug which in turn stimulated areas of the brain and bring patients back to their previous state before the incident.

fighting encephalitis

Leonard saw the effort put forth by Dr.Sayer affirming his kind heart, yet Leonard couldn’t see why people were so caught up with their lives that they tend to neglect the little things that will indeed make them happy. In Dr. Sayer’s case he spent the majority of his time in the hospital working for the better of other people yet neglecting his own desires such as relationships, friendships or even a life outside the hospital. This is best symbolized through the hospital window Dr. Sayer continuously looks out on to the outside world depicting that he is the one who is trapped behind bars even though he is free to leave anytime. Only after his witnessing Leonard’s innocence does he learn that everything he ever needed was in front of him and will always be there, from the friendships he gains with his patients and colleagues, potential relationships and of course the ability to do enjoy whatever he has got no matter how small. Unfortunately the L-DOPA effects became less effective which lead to Leonard and the other patients falling back in a catatonic state but as the process was slow Leonard wanted Dr. Sayer to learn from him, not just for the purpose of potentially benefiting the other victims but also to learn from his ability to enjoy all the things he couldn’t for 30 years and are generally taken for granted (walking in any direction). The Awakening was not just for the patients but also for Dr. Seyers new outlook on life.