Abnormal Psychology in Film Psycho Essay - 1077 Words

The film I chose to watch is the original Psycho, filmed in 1960 and directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The stars of the cast included Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles, John Gavin, and Martin Balsam. (IMDB.com, 2006) The story begins about a young woman named Marion Crane from Arizona who is fed up with her life and longs to marry her boyfriend, Sam. Unfortunately, the couple has little money and cannot marry. One Friday afternoon, she is asked to deposit forty-thousand dollars for her boss. Seeing the money as an opportunity to start a new life with her lover, she takes off for California with the money. She ends up becoming tired from the drive and pulls into the Bates Motel. Unfortunately for Marion, the owner of the motel, Norman†¦show more content†¦Initially named multiple personality disorder, dissociative identity disorder usually forms as a complex mental process that provides a coping mechanism for individuals confronting painful and/or traumatic situations. (W ikipedia.org, 2006) With this in mind, it is rather easy to see how the disorder would have formed in Normans case. It can be assumed that Norman was very jealous for his mothers attention. When she was about to re-marry he decided to murder her to prevent losing his mothers attention. After realizing the extent of his action, Norman then emulated his mother, eventually developing dissociative identity disorder. Instead of losing his mother forever, he made her a part of him by adding her to his psyche. Norman also digs up his mother and semi-preserves her using his taxidermy skills. Normans developmental process of the disease is nearly word for word from the DSM-IV. He uses it as a coping tool for the odd and traumatic experience of taking his mothers life. In the film, Norman did not receive any treatment for his mental disorder. Instead, he was secluded in a cell. In the last scene of the movie, he is shown sitting in his cell with his mothers persona having completely taken ove r his mind. His mother is muttering random nothingness as the movie fades out. In real life, treatment of dissociative identity disorder is not a simple matter. It is such a complicated disorder that there arent any direct methods ofShow MoreRelatedThe Child That Lives From Within1681 Words   |  7 Pagessocial sciences often question if psychopathic behaviour is innate or a product of a social environment. Recently, nurture-based theories has gained credibility in understanding how a child’s upbringings can trigger psychopathic behaviour. In the movie Psycho by Alfred Hitchcock, Norman Bates’ downfall proposes how crucial a healthy childhood is to mental health rather than biological vulnerability. 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