Kristen Simms Integrative Seminar 1: Fake Final Assignment
Delusion has existed in the world of entertainment for an innumerable amount of years. By definition it is “a fixed false belief that is resistant to confrontation with actual fact”. Delusion is most commonly associated with mental illness, and it is the most prominent symptom of those who suffer from schizophrenia. This disease, while unfortunately portrayed otherwise, is not as relentless as it seems. The social stigma surrounding schizophrenia is an increasingly prevalent issue, and there have been many attempts at putting it to rest, sometimes even through the use of delusion itself. Both the movie A Beautiful Mind and the “Schizophrenia Monster” illustration by Toby Allen show how delusion can be used to diminish the social stigma associated with schizophrenia by putting the viewer in the perspective of a person with the illness. In order to understand how both of these sources have used delusion to shed a positive light on schizophrenia, one must first educate themselves on the stigma that surrounds it. Many people believe that people with schizophrenia are dangerous and out of control. However, while under treatment schizophrenia patients are no more violent than the general population. Another common misconception is that schizophrenics cannot lead a successful life. Many people have went on to be very famous and successful despite dealing with schizophrenia. These, among many others, are stereotypes that cast a very negative shadow on those who suffer from this illness. In his illustration, Toby Allen uses delusion as a way to expose the viewer to the feelings associated with having schizophrenia. He does this by illustrating what he believes this disease would look like in the form of a monster. By showing schizophrenia as a scary, ruthless creature who uses hallucinogenic gases to control it's victim, Allen is using delusion in an almost childish way in order to
evoke sympathy for those who have been victimized by this “monster”. Not only does this open the viewer's eyes to the reality of the disease, but it also makes it easier for them to experience what it is like to actually have schizophrenia. By creating this monster, Toby Allen has also found a way to express that the disease is the problem, not the victim. Society has a habit of fearing those with mental illness as they feel they are scary or dangerous. This illustration associates a sense of innocence with schizophrenia by displaying the disease as a monster that a child may expect to find under their bed. Doing this helps to put the assumption that schizophrenics are scary or dangerous to rest, as typically one would not fear a child. “The Schizophrenia Monster” itself also has the ability to evoke feelings of sympathy and compassion toward those with schizophrenia. The monster is quite disturbing, with it's piercing white eyes, huge under-bite, and the greenish-gray fumes shown excreting from it's underbelly. When looking at this illustration, the fear you feel is not for yourself but instead for those suffering from this disease. The feeling that these people are dangerous is diminished while viewing “The Schizophrenia Monster” and is replaced with feelings of sympathy and understanding through it's innocent and charming qualities. The movie A Beautiful Mind uses delusion in a different way to evoke similar feelings of compassion. A Beautiful Mind is based on the true story of a mathematician named John Nash who suffers from schizophrenia. However, this isn't something the viewer is aware of in the beginning of the film. At first, Nash's social anxiety is portrayed in a very comic and lovable manner. We laugh when Nash approaches a woman at the bar and says, “I don't know what I'm required to say in order for you to have intercourse with me... so could we just skip to the sex part?” We fall even more in love with this odd character as he walks through the library with his shoes on his hands and exclaims, “I have respect for beer!” In the beginning of the movie, Nash is not at all someone you would expect to have a mental illness; he's just a little odd, in the most lovable way. The director also portrays John Nash's delusions as very charming people. For example his
roommate Charles, who at the beginning of the film we think is real, is quite the character. He is charming and witty, and tries very hard to keep Nash on his feet. Charles introduces Nash to alcohol and breaks him out of his shell. Charles' niece, who is another delusion, is also charming and lovable. The second step toward making the viewer experience delusion is to evoke the same sympathetic emotions that we feel when looking at “The Schizophrenia Monster”. This is achieved by making us feel sorry for Nash. When he has an explosion after losing a game against one of his classmates, we feel his pain. When he's told that his mathematical theory isn't good enough for placement into any program at Princeton, our hearts break right alongside his. When he's bashing his head against his dorm room window in frustration, a little part of us wants to bash our heads on that window too. This character that we have come to know and love is hurting, and we hurt with him. These feelings of sympathy that are evoked within us as viewers bring us a step closer to experiencing delusion as Nash does, and thus brings us closer to diminishing the stigma that comes with his illness. Once the film has made us feel connected to these characters, it is slowly revealed that they are not real. By doing this we experience the same confusion and heartbreak that Nash does. Throughout the whole movie, Charles and his niece seemed completely real; we had no reason to believe otherwise. But then, just as those with schizophrenia, we were told that these people that we thought were real were really just delusions. Not only does this confuse and even upset us, it helps us to understand exactly what Nash is going through at that time. We ourselves experience delusion, and in turn gain the feelings of sympathy, compassion and understanding that are necessary in order to defuse the negative social stigma that casts it's ugly shadow on those with schizophrenia. A social stigma that has existed for hundreds of years is not an easy thing to put to rest. In order to expose people to the reality of schizophrenia, they must somehow experience feelings of sympathy for it's victims. In many ways delusion can be used to uncover these emotions. This method was very successfully used in both Toby Allen's illustration of “The Schizophrenia Monster” and the movie A Beautiful Mind. Dr. Rosen, Nash's psychologist in the film, says something that sums this idea up
perfectly. While standing outside of the shock therapy room with John Nash's wife he says, “The nightmare in schizophrenia is not knowing what's true. Imagine if you had suddenly learned that the people, places, the moments most important to you were not gone, not dead, but worse: had never been. What kind of hell would that be?�