Mental disorders are a common condition that many people and families have to live with and go through in their lifetime. The disorders are more common than one may think, and in fact they are all around us we just may not know. In the 1993 film “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape”, the movie stars Johnny Depp who takes the role of a small-town man, Gilbert Grape, who takes care of his fatherless family of five. The movie shows many characteristics of autism, depression, and eating disorders. It shows examples of the life that those effected with the disorders have to live with every day.
In the film “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape”, Arnie Grape, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, is practically raised and watched by older brother Gilbert. Gilbert takes
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Arnie along wherever he goes, including work and going out with friends. Arnie starts trouble by climbing his hometown Eldora’s water tower. The first few times he gets away with his acts and the cops give him another chance, but one incident where he climbs to the very top lands him a ride to jail. Arnie has an autism spectrum disorder. He doesn’t realize all of his actions, and doesn’t know the consequences for them. Recognizable symptoms that Arnie shows are repetition of his words, and his lack of emotions towards others in social settings. Arnie could not be alive and well if he did not have the support he has. Gilbert is his care taker mostly throughout the movie. He takes him to eat, takes him on rides, and he bathes him. In one scene of the movie, Gilbert lets Arnie be a “big boy” and bathe himself. Gilbert later then leaves, and the next morning he finds Arnie still in the bathtub. Without Gilberts help, Arnie would be helpless. He is not seen as crazy or irrational, but just as someone who needs a caretaker and needs to be watched at all times. Another disorder shown in the film is with Gilbert and Arnie’s mother, Bonnie. Bonnie is an obese woman who is suffering with depression. They had said that she had not left their house in 7 years. She feels like a joke to the town, and everyone she sees. Children often peek through the house window to stare and make fun of her. Her depression started by when her husband had committed suicide in their basement years before. Since then, she has been binge eating and become obese. Like Arnie, she too depends on the family to take care of her. The two sisters, Amy and Ellen, are the housekeepers whom cook and clean for the family. By the end of the movie, Bonnie suddenly dies in her sleep. I think for Arnie’s character, the film depicted his autism well. DiCaprio played his role exceptionally well, that it seemed real. He showed and acted in the ways that we most see of those with autism. And for the role of Bonnie, I think they could have portrayed her disorder better. While she did show her parts well, I wasn’t very convinced or sure of what she was going through. In one scene of the film, you could tell she was depressed because of the way she was sitting at their dining table and she did not touch her food. The movie displayed great acting and meaning towards the disorders they had. The Iowan family had trouble throughout their lives, facing the death of their father and then soon to be mother. They faced adversity with the townspeople who did not understand the problems they had. With a son who did not know how to behave and keep calm in certain situations, that caused even more problematic situations. According to medlineplus.gov, autism spectrum disorder is a “a neurological and developmental disorder that begins early in childhood and lasts throughout a person's life. It affects how a person acts and interacts with others, communicates, and learns. It includes what used to be known as Asperger syndrome and pervasive developmental disorders.” Currently, there is not a treatment to cure the disorder. Although, there are alternatives. By starting a child at a young age to learn new skills and behaviors, it can help them in their growth as a person. If a child has symptoms of autism spectrum disorder, it is best if you take them to a doctor to be checked and evaluated for their condition. Also, autismspeaks.org states that 1 in 68 children have a case of autism. The disorder is more seen and common for young boys and males rather than females. It causes difficulty in growth of the persons physical, mental, learning, and behavioral capabilities. For the case of depression, adaa.org claims that the disorder affects more than 15 million adults. We all more than likely know a person who is struggling with depression. Depression can be caused by many things, but death and weight are the main common reasons. Depression is the leading disorder in the world, with 350 million cases of diagnosis around the globe. In the film, the mother Bonnie had started her depression after the suicide of her husband. Death affects loved ones hard and emotionally, which can tear them down. Depression can be treated, and the most common treatment there is for it is therapy. Therapy, exercising, and lifestyle changes can help relieve the pain and make towards a better life. Exercise is seen to release endorphins, which makes the person feel better about themselves and makes them more positive which can work like an antidepressant. An eating disorder is shown in the film as well, once again with the mother, Bonnie. Her disorder came along with her depression, which causes her to binge eat. She tells Gilbert that she doesn’t want to be seen as a joke, and that she never meant to become that way, which is why she has not left the house in several years. According to aedweb.org, 3% of the population has a binge eating disorder. Binge eating is where a person is compulsively eating but does not try to get rid of the food they just ate by purging it. The condition is more common in overweight and obese individuals. There are many problems that occur with the disorder, and it can severely put a person in risk for their life. People who are overweight and obese tend to have a shorter life span than those who are at a healthy weight and eat sufficient food and exercise regularly. Symptoms of binge eating disorders include anxiety, shame of eating habits, depression, and lack of control. The victim knows what they are doing but cannot help themselves. They don’t recognize the consequences and the long-term effects that come along with it. For treatment and cures, there are many centers which help patients with the eating disorders. Therapy is another form of treatment. Often being surrounded by others with the same problem can motivate each other to live a healthier life and overcome their overeating. Caring for a person with a mental disability can be quite challenging. Gilbert Grape takes on the role for taking care of things for his brother and mother. Gilbert has to keep his eye on Arnie at all times or trouble could arise. Arnie had a reoccurring problem with climbing the towns water tower. Though he would get told every time he would get in serious trouble, his mind worked to as where he did not know, or would not remember the consequences that would come along with what he did. As for the mother, Bonnie, she was watched by the two sisters. Bonnie and Arnie had a close relationship. She really cared and loved her son. They would lay together on the couch and hug each other. Arnie actually was the first one to find his mother who had died. It is uncertain if her death was caused by depression or her being obese. Mental and psychological disorders are something that a whole family has to deal with, and this film, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, shows a great portrayal of it. Gilbert always had Arnie by his side and even though sometimes it was too much to handle, he kept up with it and tried to make Arnie happy. In most cases, the parents usually have their children who suffer with this condition with them their whole lives. They need special attention, more than a normal average kid, and require certain things such as help with bathing, personal hygiene, clothing, and eating. What some people may not know or think of is that mental retardation is not a disease, it is a condition. The age when it occurs is usually by birth. The rate of children with autism has risen about 30 percent in two years. About 1 percent of the world has autism spectrum disorder. It is difficult for them to learn, and most of them do not speak. Some often speak, but it is rare. There is no set life expectancy for those with autism, but they are more prone to accidents so the stakes are twice as high. To conclude this text, the effects from depression and autism spectrum disorder leave a lifelong journey for the person with the disorder and the ones around them.
Depression causes many mental effects and in most cases, if not treated or helped, can result in suicide. In What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, the character, Bonnie, who struggles with depression and obesity, died of natural causes in her sleep. Anxiety and social isolation are common results from depression as well. For autism spectrum disorder, there is not cure for the condition. Teaching the child from an early age can help the case and make them a better learner for their future in education. While there is no cure for autism spectrum disorder, therapy sessions are the best help. In the case for depression and eating disorders, therapy is a great help as well. I chose this film because of the way it shows the lives of multiple characters who are suffering with a disorder. It shows emotions, hardships, and difficulty with taking care of another individual. My final thoughts on the movie are that while it is an older film, it still shows many excerpts on mental disorders. Every member of the Grape family had to deal with their mother and brother in their daily lives. The disorders are not diseases, but they are conditions. Conditions that develop from birth, childhood, or from an emotional period in their life. Therapy is the best form of help that a person with depression, an eating disorder, or autism can
receive.
George constantly reminds Lennie that he would not be struggling if he wasn’t taking care of him (STEINBECK, 1977). Similarly, in the film What's Eating Gilbert Grapes, Gilbert is a teenager struggling to provide for his family consisting of two sisters, a mentally handicapped brother and an obese mother. Gilbert is held up with responsibilities making him have no time for a social life (DEWIS, 2011).
The Grapes are a family living in a rural and economically depressed community. The members of the Grape family presently residing in the familial home consists of biological birth mother Bonnie Grape, who is unemployed and 54 years of age. Amy Grape, the eldest child, Unemployed and currently 34 years of age. Gilbert Grape, the eldest male sibling who is employed at a local grocery store and is currently 24, years of age. Arnie Grape is Gilbert’s younger brother and is presently turning 18 years of age. Arnie reaching his 18th birthday is considered to be somewhat of a triumph by the Grape family, as Arnie suffers from a debilitating medical condition that has not only kept him from achieving age appropriate developmental milestones but also threatens to shorten his life expectancy considerably. The youngest sibling Ellen Grape is currently employed at a local ice cream parlor and is 16 years of age.
Gilbert Grape is the eldest child. He takes on the role of being the head of the family by working a full-time job at the town’s mini-grocery store providing for his siblings, special care for his disabled brother Arnie and homebound mother. Amy Grape is the second eldest and takes on the motherly role in the household while becoming their
The movie utilized for this assignment was What’s Eating Gilbert Grape. This movie explored the life of the Grape family consisting of Gilbert, Ellen, Arnie, Bonnie and Amy. (Hallström, Blomquist, Matalon, Ohlsson, Teper 1993). The movie reveals the struggles that the family face while raising Arnie who had a chronic mental illness (Hallström et al., 1993). This paper will discuss the priority concerns and corresponding interventions that are pertinent for the Grape family based on thorough use of the Calgary family assessment model. The focus of this papers assessment on the family will be on the functional aspect; however the structural and developmental aspects have been assessed.
The viewpoint of mental illness portrays that mental illness is a common mechanism when dealing with stress or drastic changes. Many people are not as exposed with people who have mental disorders. This movie brings in two extremely different people, but they find themselves falling for each other despite their extra baggage. Tiffany has a heavy baggage she is carrying around. She could not accept the fact that Tommy left her suddenly. Although Tiffany’s character seems odd and dysfunctional, this movie portrays Tiffany, as a woman and a person, trying to move on. This film accurately portrays this disorder. There are some Hollywood viewpoints of mental illness, but this movie accurately portrays Tiffany as someone with borderline personality disorder. She shows many signs of borderline personality disorder symptoms. Many viewers can sense that areas in her life are dysfunctional and not
Culture is a collection of religion, traditions, and beliefs that are passed down from generation to generation. Culture is created and maintained through the repetition of stories and behavior. It is never definite because it is continuously being modified to match current trends, however, historical principles are still relevant. With respect to mental illness, culture is crucial to how people choose to deal with society and the methods used to diagnose and cope with mental illnesses. In Watters’
In the film "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" directed by Lasse Hallstrom in 1993, one of the main ideas is that of struggle and hardship. This idea is significant to the film because it relates to each character in a different way, making the storyline more interesting. Three different techniques used by Lasse Hallstrom to illustrate the idea of struggle and hardship include Gilberts voice over, the extra close-ups of Bonnie as she climbs the stairs and the double up of dialogue, where Mrs Carver is talking to Gilbert, and Mr Carver is heard tying to entertain their children in background.
For my final essay, I have chosen the movie “Fatal Attraction”, and I will focus on Alex Forrest and her mental disorder. Borderline Personality was displayed in the movie and Alex had almost every symptom of this disorder. Throughout this essay, I will be discussing Alex’s characteristics, intelligence, motivation, stress, social influences and/ or personality theories, treatment, and if the depiction of the disorder and treatment is consistent with what was discussed and read in the course.
This Analysis Paper is an analysis of social problems an issues presented in the film. The film under analysis in this paper is "What 's Eating Gilbert Grape" (1993). The topics used as a lens for analysis are family, social roles, deviance, and social groups. This paper will present numerous examples of these social issue topics as they are displayed in the film.
In this paper the reader will be able to find a variety of different areas covered. A detailed summary of the movie 28 days directed by Betty Thomas in 2000 will start the paper. The diagnostic criteria of a psychiatric disease will be included along with rationales why the main character fits the diagnosis of disease. Included is the effectiveness or non-effectiveness of coping mechanisms. Pharmacological with classification and non-pharmacological treatments will be included in addition to discussion of ethical and legal issues. This paper will include whether it would be an acceptable fit for patients or families with the same diagnosis. Lastly, will be an overall conclusion of the information provided in the paper.
Social Psychology is the study of how we think and relate to other people. These psychologists focused on how the social situation influences others behavior. We see social influences everywhere we go, but might not notice it. Like when watching a movie for fun you do not notice it as much as when you are actually looking for the behaviors, like in the film The Breakfast Club. There are several examples of social psychological behaviors in the film.
Erikson’s Stages of Development was seen most widely in Freaks and Geeks. Whenever there is a mix of freshmen age children in with older adolescents, there is always that awkward stage. When I was in the 9th grade, the school system I was in was still utilizing the junior high school and we would not enter high school until the ninth grade. The year that Freaks and Geeks was to take place, I myself was in the 9th grade, so I sympathized with the show somewhat. Sam and Rory from Gilmore Girls had trust from their mothers, where on the other hand, Danny from geeks and Lane, from Gilmore, dealt with mistrust because of how their mothers were. Danny’s mother expected him to drop everything and get what she needed, even if that meant missing school, and Lane’s mother did not allow her to
Mental disorders can be accompanied by dangerous and harmful side effects. In Dennis Lehane’s Shutter Island, there are many effects of a mental illness that are damaging to an individual. However, there are three effects that seem more harmful and long-term. First, many people who are sleep deprived tend to develop difficulties with their mental state. Furthermore, a mental illness can often cause an individual to respond to an emotional situation in a violent fashion. Most importantly, when one’s mental state is damaged, flashbacks and distorted memories are common.
It tells the story of a person, family and community in which individuals suffer from mental disorders much the same way as people do in the real world. Not only did I find this movie quite accurate concerning mental illness but I also established some important messages concerning mental illness in today’s society. The film takes into account that mental illness is a part of society and overall has a positive outlook on it. Their illnesses don 't define their identities nor are they even the main point of the story. In coming together, the characters find the mutual support that enables them to approach their struggles and redirect their lives in a more positive direction. To some degree, this film addresses stigma and the fact that persons with mental illness should be allowed to participate in society over being kept in a hospital, in other words, it gives
Mental illness is the condition that significantly impede with an individual’s emotional, cognitive or social abilities (Savy and Sawyer, 2009). According to (Savy and Sawyer, 2009) neurological, metabolic, genetic and psychological causes are contributing factors for various types of mental illness like depression, schizophrenia, substance abuse and progression of condition. An elaborate system known as DSM-IV-TR gives a classification system that acts to separate mental illness into diagnostic categories based on the description of symptoms of illness (Savy and Sawyer, 2009). The exact primarily causes of mental illness are complicated, however, it seems to occur in a psychologically and biologically prone individual, in the trigger of environmental and social stress (Elder, Evans and Nizette, 2007).