Domestic Violence In The Film 'Good Will Hunting'

506 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Effect of child abuse

1.When a youth goes through suffering (ex. domestic violence, abusive relationships, etc.), numerous complications emerge throughout their development. They may be consumed by irritability, suspicion, and trust issues and have behavioural patterns, including paranoia, dishonesty, and impulsive behaviour. Others develop personality disorders similar to PTSD. The long-term effects of child abuse are also shown through the movie character Will Hunting who suffered child abuse in foster care and now is an impulsive man who refuses to reach out for help. Although, there are exceptions for negative development in those who have experienced childhood trauma.

2.As a result of the factors that impact violent behaviour, including liquor, brutal threats and a violent history there are numerous abuse and mistreatment studies regarding youth who experience domestic violence at a young age and how this brutality causes future behavioral problems. Similarly, Villani and Sharfstein research aggressive teenager inclinations that influence adulthood, and they associate behavioral disorders to violent kinds. In the movie Good Will Hunting, Will is a perfect example of how abuse is a source unmanageable rage. For example, Will makes excuses for physically assaulting a bully who beat him up in elementary. In the fight scene, Will’s companions pull him off the antagonist because Will harshly strikes the bully’s face. …show more content…

For example, impulsive Will Hunting confronts a man at a bar and asks him to solve his argument with his friends through fighting. This scene clearly demonstrates how he resorts violence, not through conversation. Also, the police arrested Will for many crimes including assault, grand theft auto, impersonating a police officer, resisting arrest, and shoplifting. Therefore, Will’s negative disposition is a result of the childhood abuse he

Show More
Related

  • Psychological Disorders In Good Will Hunting

    867 Words  | 2 Pages

    The clinical disorders are mainly due to the abuse that was inflicted by his foster family which has led him to have a fear of facing other fear and being defensive as a mechanism to protect himself (Gubala, 2014). The lack of empathy from his family contributed to the stress disorder. Will can display his inferior complex in his relationships since he only befriends people of lower intellect than himself and he regards himself to be not good enough in his relationship with the protagonist. He believes that the abuse he received was his fault which is a sign of an unstable

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Childhood Trauma

    1585 Words  | 4 Pages

    However, the most clear and abundant effect of childhood trauma appeared to be behavioral problems. This was also the issue that often got covered up the most with “he/she is just a bad kid.” Like what was mentioned before, no kid is a bad kid. However, because the behavioral problems are what normally catches everybody’s eyes its normally what is caught first. Then you have the learning and emotional problems. Many people will often say that the child is slow or that they are sensitive, but many times there is so much more to the problem. There is a much larger problem lying in the background that often causes all the rest of the problems and it is not something that can just be brushed away with words like “lazy, slow, and sensitive.” The main problem must be directed head on that way we can potentially stop these negative effects and labeling that come from childhood

    Read More

  • Why Do Juveniles Do Bad Things?

    849 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...ed very seriously when determining if this has anything to do with their decision to become involved in delinquent acts. Child physical abuse can lead to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and can ultimately affect their state of mind and how they view decisions as good or bad. By not being able to distinguish the differences between good and bad, it is more likely they will become involved with negative acts that can affect the outcome of the rest of their lives. Serious issues come into play when a child’s mental state of mind is altered and it can be very difficult to guide them back to the right path of life, especially if they have become too deeply involved with delinquent acts. It is important to combat this problem from the start to help keep them on the straight and narrow, and provide the help they need to adjust their mental state of mind to the proper stage.

    Read More

  • Aggression Social Psychology

    1164 Words  | 3 Pages

    Since the beginning of social psychology, psychologist has been trying to analyze how people’s thoughts, feelings, and behavior are impacted by aggression. When an aggressive person gets frustrated or upset, social psychologist tracks down what exactly drives them to commit crimes, atrocities, or even abuse. According to Kassin, Fein, and Markus, aggression is “behavior intended to harm another individual” (2016). Individuals who attain this trait don’t always have to physically abuse someone, aggressive attacks could be verbal, emotional, or mental as well. Although many might argue that people who are viewed as aggressive tend to harm another person because that is their only cure, however, there are alternative motives that drive aggression,

    Read More

  • Juxtaposition In Good Will Hunting

    1180 Words  | 3 Pages

    But when Will interacts with the therapists, the good Will that others are obsessively trying to create is in reality still the bad Will, even though in the eyes of the alert audience the counselor is ethical and caring and trying to work with Will.

    Read More

  • Everlasting Scars

    770 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are many people who are abused when they are children but we don’t think about how this affects the abused when they are adults. Abuse comes in many forms; physical, verbal, and emotional. Abuse can scar a person mentally and emotionally for the rest of their life. People that have been abused often have to resort to therapy to deal with the demons of their past. How does this mentally affect people who were abused as children?

    Read More

  • The History of Domestic Violence in the United States

    476 Words  | 1 Pages

    Historically, legal and social traditions in the United States have permitted and supported the abuse of women and children by the male head of household. This historical phenomenon helps explain why women are the primary victims of domestic violence. In this country, civil rights and legal responsibilities were first granted to free, property-owning men. Wives, children, and slaves were considered "chattel" or personal property of male citizens who were held responsible for their public behavior.

    Read More

  • Humanistic Psychology In Good Will Hunting

    1872 Words  | 4 Pages

    The purpose of this report is to analyse the personality of the character, Will Hunting from the film Good Will Hunting using the psychodynamic and humanistic theories of personality. The main characters discussed in this text and their relationship to Will can be seen in appendix 1.

    Read More

  • Domestic Violence Essay with Annotated Bibliography

    1594 Words  | 4 Pages

    There are many different types of domestic violence. Physical abuse is the most obvious form, but this is not to say that outsiders always recognize it. Generally, physical violence causes bodily harm, using a variety of methods. Slapping, pushing, throwing, hitting, punching, and strangling are only a few methods. An object or weapon may or may not be used. There is not always physical evidence of physical abuse such as bruising, bleeding, scratches, bumps, etc., therefore, absence of physical marks does not necessarily mean physical abuse had not occurred. Physical abuse sometimes escalates to murder (Morris and Biehl 7, Haley 14-17).

    Read More

  • Children Commiting Murder: Too Young to Kill

    1937 Words  | 4 Pages

    Children are usually known for their innocence and happiness but this is not always the case for every child. The environment a child grows up in affects them for the rest of their life. Growing up in a bad household can set a child up to live an unusual life. Children that are abused by their parents are more likely to form psychiatric issues. Dr. Ken Magid, a clinical psychologist who specializes in the treatment of severely abused children, says in Child of Rage, “These children have been so traumatized in the first years of life that they cannot form a bond with other people. These children do not have a conscience and they can hurt or even kill without any feelings of remorse.” Children must be able to form normal, healthy relationships at home in order to develop a normal conscience. The child interviewed displayed so much hate and resent towards males all because her birth father would rape her when she was thirteen months old. She talked about trying to kill her own brother and did not even seem disturbed from her intentions. Everything that happens to a young child will affect them for the rest of their life...

    Read More

  • Social Workers Case Study

    1008 Words  | 3 Pages

    It could also lead in to their future and become more prominent in the coming years such as domestic violence, violence in general. “Every year an estimated 3.3 million to 10 million children are exposed to domestic violence in their home” Moylan, Carrie A., Herrenkohl, Todd I., Sousa, Cindy, Tajima, Emiko A., Herrenkohl, Roy C., Russo, M. Jean (2010). “Studies investigating the prevalence of child abuse find that almost 900,000 children are classified as maltreated by parents and other caretakers” Moylan et al. (2010). Teens who were abused as children are also more likely to exhibit externalizing behavior problems, such as delinquency and violence

    Read More

  • Erikson's Psychosocial Development In The Movie: Good Will Hunting

    920 Words  | 2 Pages

    (Erikson, 1980) Erikson’s psychosocial stages of development theory are in my opinion one of the best ways to look at Will Hunting’s changing personality and behaviour in the movie. Will’s avoidant and defensive personality is due to his abusive foster parents, he never received sympathy from his foster parents which made him accept the abuse as well as him becoming the abuser, as we see in the film when Will fights a former classmate that bullied him in kindergarten years ago. Another example of abuse is in the form of psychological abuse towards the marriage of Macguire and his deceased wife in which Will continually insults. Will seems to fluctuate stages throughout the movie, due to being an orphan and abuse from his foster parents he is fluctuating between the stages of basic trust vs. mistrust, and Initiative vs. guilt. Then when he meets Skylar (Minnie Driver) his development shifts to intimacy vs. isolation. (Erikson,

    Read More

  • Child Neglect Essay

    1038 Words  | 3 Pages

    ... exposed to abusive environments show delays or restrictions in their physical growth as well as in their mental development (Smith, 1975).

    Read More

  • Child Maltreatment

    2804 Words  | 6 Pages

    ... In some cases, recurrent maltreatment occurs when the child is reunified with the biological parents or original caregivers. Children who are abused can display behavioral problems, which can impact many areas of their life. They tend to act out at school and have low academic performance (Webb, 2007). They may also internalize their behavior by becoming depressed and showing symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

    Read More

  • Child Abuse: Literature Review: Effects Of Child Abuse

    1352 Words  | 3 Pages

    One of the most obvious and damaging results of child abuse is death; however, research illustrating the effects on a growing child who has been abused has demonstrated many other lifelong negative factors (Felitti, Anda, Nordenberg, Williamson, Spitz, Edwards, Koss, Marks, 1998). In consonance children who suffer from abuse can show signs of depression, social withdraw, and even violent behavior. As a child grows older, they may suffer from poor physical health, such as high blood pressure, obesity, stress, and psychological disorders and disabilities (Herronkohl, T., Hong, Klika, and Herronkohl, R., 2013). Child abuse and neglect have also been associated with depression, anger disorders, and post-traumatic

    Read More

More about Domestic Violence In The Film 'Good Will Hunting'

Open Document