Hierarchy Of Needs: Movie Analysis

1.) Sam provided stages one through four for Lucy. For stage one Sam gave Lucy a sense of trust. He bought her better diapers when the cloth when the ones Sam made didn’t work. Though, in the beginning Sam wasn’t feeding Lucy enough so he asked for help and got a feeding schedule going. If Sam did not provide all these important aspects for Lucy then it could build some mistrust. Stage two occurs when Lucy starts to talk and walk. With Lucy starting to do these things independently she also started to notice other things that she could do on her own. Although in the movie we didn't get to see much of this stage we can infer that Sam helped provide it for her. In stage two Lucy learns anatomy. Stage three occurs when Lucy suggests going to a burger place instead of IHOP.

This shows that Lucy is starting to form some initiative. Although Sam shoots down Lucy’s idea at first, but ends up bringing her to the restaurant. Although, Lucy ends up feeling guilty when Sam gets upset when trying to order. Also, in one scene Lucy needed new shoes. After going through many pairs they finally found the right ones. This is stage three because Lucy was the one who made the final decision. Lastly, when Lucy presents by herself with Sam’s encouragement, that is stage four. With Sam’s support she was able to talk about her project with confidence and independence. After Lucy’s presentation there was a little boy who tried to present. Throughout the presentation you could tell his dad was feeding him all the facts. It seemed like it was the dads project and not the kids. This child was provided with inferiority instead of industry. These are the four Erikson stages of that Sam provided for Lucy.

2.) I believe that Sam really encouraged the development of good moral Lucy. In the scene where Lucy lies under oath Sam is in another room watching her on a tv. When he sees Lucy lying, he tries to talk to her through the screen. He keeps on telling her not to lie. I think that this disappointed Sam and he wanted her to do the right thing. This leads me to think that Sam is at stage 4 of Kohlberg’s theory of moral development. Sam usually does what he thinks is right. Another scene that causes me to believe that Sam is at stage four is when he was talking about how he was going to get a promotion at the cinema. He said that he lost the promotion to a different guy who snuck his friend in for free. He thought that was wrong and said that he wouldn’t do that. lastly, there was one scene where Rita asked Sam to “manipulate” the truth. Sam refused because he did not believe it was right. These are some reasons why I think Sam is at stage four of Kohlberg’s.
I think that Lucy is at stage two of Kohlberg’s theory which is the hope of a reward. While in stage two all you think about is what you will get out of the situation personally.for example, in one scene she tells Sam that she is allowed to go to the park. Even though it is against the rules. Sam is not allowed to take her because the court has not decided if he is capable of taking care of her. Lucy is just thinking about her benefit. Another scene that proves she is in stage two is where she lies to the police. When Lucy lies to the police it is so Sam has a better chance of winning the case. Once again if Sam wins the case then Lucy gets to go home with him. This action works to Lucy’s benefit. This is why I think Lucy is in stage two of Kohlberg’s theory.

3.) I believe that Sam Provided all the Needs possible for Lucy. Sam was able to provide all the aspects of the physiological stage. He was able to give Lucy food, shelter, and he was the one who helped give her life. Sam also provides Lucy with safety. Overall I believe that Sam is keeping Lucy safe because the apartment building seem to sketchy. Also Sam has an ok job and just got a promotion that helps. Although in the end I think that Sam provides the most love and belonging. Because Sam is a single parent and we can infer that his parents weren't that great. Sam really wants to make sure that he provides this for Lucy. He always reads her stories and makes her laugh and smile. Lucy was also provided with self-esteem. Sam always supports Lucy and tells her how amazing she is. For example, when Lucy was presenting Sam was in the audience. When Lucy forgot some information during the presentation Sam told her that she could do it. With Sam giving her all this support Lucy gained a lot of confidence. This is most likely to gain some respect from others. Although Lucy has the last step of self-actualization it was not provided by Sam. This last step cannot be provided by anyone but yourself. In the end I believe that Sam provided all the hierarchy of needs possible.
There were many other characters that were provided with some of the hierarchy of needs.

First of all, Rita provided a few of the needs for Willie. Willie’s parents provided him with food, shelter, water, and many other necessities. So he was pretty good when it came to his physiological needs. He was also provided with a lot of safety. This is due to his parents good jobs. With such good income they are able to get a nice big house with good protection and resources. Although, with both parents working he was not provided with a lot of love or belonging. His parents did not spend too much time with him at first but in the end of the movie he spends more time with his mom. And when it comes to esteem and self actualization. Not much was provided at all. I believe Rita was provided with about the same things as Willie was. Although they don’t say much about Rita's past I assume that she was provided with physiological, safety, esteem and self actualization needs. I am not quite sure if she was provided with love and belonging. She might have not been and that could be the reason that she did not spend a lot of time with Willie at first. These are a few characters and the needs they were provided

with.
On the other hand I think that there was one character that was provided with
little needs. This character is Annie, we don’t know exactly what happened in her past. Although, we can infer that she wasn’t provided with much safety or physiological needs. We aslo can assume that she did not receive much love. I think the only need she had very much of is self-actualization.

4.) Rita changes a lot throughout this movie. In the beginning of this movie Rita is portrayed as a very organized and very busy person. She has everything lined up and on sticky notes. The only way she could fit a workout was to take the stairs instead of the elevator on her way to an appointment. Also in the beginning she didn’t think that her son liked her so she decided not to spend time with him.Then Sam came to her for help. At first she was not going to work for Sam because he didn’t have enough money. After a while she told him that she would work for him for free. I feel like Sam had a major impact on Rita. He taught her how to be patience and empathetic. You can tell throughout the movie how Rita slowly starts to change and become softer. Also after a while of seeing Sam and Lucy’s relationship she decides that she wants to fix hers with Willie. So she spends more time with him. In the final Scene you can see her and Willie watching Lucy’s soccer game. From this you can assume that their relationship is a lot stronger. These are ways Rita and her relation with Willie have changed over the movie.
I believe that Rita is at stage five of Erikson’s stages. This is because in this stage is mostly taken up by work and sometimes raising kids. Sometimes people in this stage develop stagnation at this stage. I definitely think that Rita had met some stagnation in her relationship with Willie. This is because in one scene in the movie Rita goes into the room to talk to Willie. When she asks him something he responds with a quick answer and they both go back to what they are doing in opposite rooms of the house. You can also tell they have a bad relationship because of the paucity of conversation. These are reasons why I think that Rita is in stage five of Erikson.

5.) There are many challenges that new parents face with having a newborn. When new parents have a child there is always a little bit of struggling to figure things out. somethings. one challenge that a new parent has to face is finding out how often to feed, change, and put the baby to sleep. Once they get a schedule down it is easier to handle. Another challenge is finding out what brand products to buy like diapers, bottles, and baby food. Sam also had to deal with these challenges. For example a few weeks Lucy was first born there was a night where Lucy would not stop crying. In order to deal with this Sam took Lucy to his neighbor's apartment to get her advice. Annie told him that she needed to be fed more often. To help Sam understand when to feed her Annie helped make a schedule according to when his favorite tv shows are on. Also when Sam first tried to put a diaper on Lucy he used a cloth and some pins. When that didn’t work he used common sense and when to the store to get diapers. These are some challenges that new parents face and how Sam coped with them.

6.) There are many parenting qualities that Sam possess. Sam is able to teach good morals to Lucy this is very important. It will help her make major decisions in her life. This has a lot to do with Kohlberg’s theory of morality. Sam also loves Lucy very much and cares for her. Sam is there for Lucy when she needs him and will do anything for her. This fits in with the love and belonging section of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Lastly, Sam provides encouragement and praise. this takes a major part in Erikson’s stage four. Without this the child might develop an inferiority complex. These are a few of Sam’s parenting qualities.
Although Sam has many good parenting qualities he also lacks a few. Sam lacks the abilities to get a higher paying job. This could threaten the safety section on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. He also lacks the ability to help Lucy with certain tasks such as reading. This is part of Erikson’s stage 3. If he can’t do certain things how she supposed to help her achieve these tasks. These are a few parenting qualities that Sam lacks.

7.) I think that society tends to be more accepting of Rita’s compulsive tendencies than Sam’s. I don’t think this is necessarily right but I believe it is true. I believe this is because Sam is “different” so people see it as inappropriate for him to be acting in such a way. Although, since Rita is “normal” she is allowed to act this way. To be honest I am not quite sure it is this was I just know it has been this way for a while. It is probably because people that are “normal” are treated with more respect sometimes. It may be because if you are “normal” and act this way you know what you want, but if you are “different and act this way you are just being difficult.

8.) I think that when Annie was little her parents weren't the greatest. I am inferring this because in the court scene when she was testifying she got asked about her father. Just the mentioning of her father made her freeze up and not speak. After the car ride to her apartment it took her hours till she was ready to leave the car and walk back to her apartment. This leads me to believe that something unpleasant happened in her first stage of Erikson’s stages of development. Something must of happened that created mistrust between her parents and her. Although, the movie does not say what quite happened. Annie could have been abused or her parents might have not provided the necessities for her. There is no way to know for sure. All we know is her parents weren't that great.