Diversity Sometimes the Worst Disabilities Are Those

Diversity

Sometimes the worst disabilities are those which are invisible to the naked eye; people who have a mental illness or disability are overwhelmingly stigmatized by society and discrimination against them is both widespread and fully condoned in our culture. (Johnstone, 2005). The disadvantages of mental disabilities are compounded by the fact that the abilities which are disabled, so to speak, tend to be those which are most useful in navigating the social provisions for the disabled, and by the lack of physical manifestations which may discourage outsiders from recognizing the need for intervention. Thus there are many particular challenges facing the mentally disabled, including a lack of social sensitivity to, acceptance of, and knowledge about these disabilities, and widespread institutional discrimination affecting employment, medical care, travel, residency, and many other aspects of life. The purpose of this paper is to explore the portrayal in film and literature of the challenges faced by people with mentally disabilities; this may be accomplished by discussing in detail the films Forrest Gump and A Beautiful Mind.

Mental health, mental illness, and mental disabilities are popular themes in many movies. From the classics such as One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, which is set in a facility for the mentally disabled, and The Rain Man, which tells the story of an autistic man and his brother, to more recent box-office hits such as Girl, Interrupted, about a girl with a borderline personality disorder, and I Am Sam, which portrays a man with an intellectual disability, mental disabilities have been explored by countless filmmakers. Mental illness is certainly not a new topic for artists to explore, as is evidenced by the prevalence of mental disorders in Shakespearean drama and the literature of the Victorian era. " Characters with mental disabilities or mental illnesses have long been staples of literature. Paranoia and senility, for example, are subjects that Shakespeare exploited in Macbeth and Lear; a popular entertainment for Elizabethans was visiting the lunatic asylum..." (Smith, 1999) There is something unique about exploring these topics in today's society because of the dichotomy which exists between the simultaneous demands for political correctness and stigmatization of the mentally challenged. Movie critics, as well as the common movie audiences, are often confused by the technicalities of mental, emotional, and intellectual disabilities. "This tendency to conflate all mental disability, both emotional and intellectual in origin, shows that public education about various disabilities is still needed." (Duncan, 2002) Movies which strive to reveal something about these conditions may actually be portraying stereotypes that further the stigmatization and misconceptions already present in society. Both of the films in question, Forrest Gump and A Beautiful Mind, fall at least partially into both sides of this dichotomy; they both portray positive aspects of the characters with mental disabilities in such a way that audiences will think well of these characters, as well as providing these same audiences with some fuel for their prejudices through oversimplification and misrepresentation.

The movie Forrest Gump focuses on a mentally impaired person who succeeds in life despite what appears to be severe disadvantages and the many obstacles he is forced to overcome. The main character, Forrest, played by Tom Hanks, finds this success through his optimism and "dumb" luck. Forrest grows up in Greenbow, Alabama, where his mother, played by Sally Field, runs a boarding house while caring for her "special needs" child. Forrest has an IQ of 75, which is 5 points below what is considered normal; Forrest has an intellectual disability and is considered to be "slow." While he is outcast from social circles in his school and community, his mother and his best friend both see him as a kind, good person. This friend, Jenny Curran, played by Robin Wright, reached out to Forrest in elementary school when he faced social rejection that bordered on physical danger. This abused girl turns into a self-destructive woman who samples the worst excesses of the drug counterculture. In fact, the harassment he goes through because of limited understanding of the world around him give Forrest a uniquely positive perception of life. Gump maintain his optimism in the midst of the political, social and cultural turmoil of 60s and 70s. Forrest becomes a star football player, a war hero, a successful businessman. There is one defining element in his life: his unswerving love for Jenny even though Jenny had a lot of faults and was not always there for Forest, but he never gave up on her. She is always in his thoughts, no matter what he's doing or where he is.

The second movie, A Beautiful Mind, is a "true story" (which is highly fictionalized) of a mathematician named John Forbes Nash Jr., who is played by Russell Crowe. It covers the life span of John Nash from mathematical genius, to delusional schizophrenic and then to Nobel Prize winner. We first meet John Nash in 1948, and he is entering Princeton University as a graduate student with social problems due to paranoid schizophrenia. He rarely goes to class and spends most of his time in his dorm room searching for a discovery of a new groundbreaking mathematical theory. Most of his colleagues steer clear of him, except his roommate, Charles, who tries to lighten him up. Shortly after receiving recognition for his theories at Princeton, he becomes a professor at the prestigious school of MIT where he meets his wife, Alicia. He then works as a consultant for the Pentagon, cracking impossible codes no one else can. He also meets the compelling government agent, played by Ed Harris, who recruits the professor to break codes for the Department of Defense. It is only a few years later that Nash's schizophrenia is diagnosed. Nash's "beautiful mind" is descending into madness and his grip on reality is fading. The drugs and shock therapy dull him so senselessly and also reduced his ability to be intimate with his wife, and made an already strained relationship even more difficult. All Nash wants is his mind back, so he begins to fight his illness on his own terms. Through the years, John's delusions don't necessarily go away, but he learns to deal with them sanely and finally gains the respect and admiration from his peers with the support of his wife. A Beautiful Mind, far more than many films including mentally ill patients, portrays the true devastation and the struggles schizophrenia entails. "Schizophrenia is a devastating brain disorder that...interferes with a person's ability to think clearly, to distinguish reality from fantasy, to manage emotions, make decisions, and relate to others," (Weinberger, 2003) and this film truly shows the ravages of this mysterious illness and is so doing allows us to have a more profound understanding of schizophrenia in the society. Perhaps the best element of this movie's plot and message is that it does not attempt to portray schizophrenia and its aftermath as a joke or an amusing dramatic episode; rather, the hero experiences real challenges in a man's attempt to have a decent life in spite of mental illness.