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Fear And Ignorance In Jessie Nelson's I Am Sam '

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Every day, other people perceive us differently than how we perceive ourselves and this can often be like a wound on our heart and soul. We are regularly regarded as being less than adequate or not experienced enough in many aspects of our everyday lives. Often, others focus on all the things that we aren’t, rather than all the things that we are. Being seen as replaceable, incompetent or simply just unskilled is a difficult experience and is often met with sadness or confusion when we believe in ourselves and know that we are qualified. Jessie Nelson’s “I Am Sam” highlights the idea that the perception others have of us often is a result of fear and ignorance. This is developed through Sam’s determinedness to be a father, his understanding …show more content…

With a new job at Pizza Hut, Sam works as hard as he can to afford a two-bedroom apartment so that Lucy will have a room to herself. As a man who requires order and organization, this change of job shows us how much Sam loves his daughter and how love trumps all. He also seeks out services to help Lucy with schoolwork as Sam is incapable of helping her in this area himself. However, after seeing Lucy with her new family, Sam becomes convinced that she “doesn't need him“ because “she has a new family now.” Rita, who has come to love Sam for his innocent yet loving ways, convinces him that Lucy does need him, which is proved when Lucy repeatedly sneaks out of her new house to visit Sam in the middle of the night. Despite being brought back to her new house by Sam and scolded by her new parents, Lucy shows a desperation and a need to be with Sam. Her new foster parents recognize this, and begin to see Sam in a new light. Their perception of him changes from being a dangerous, immature and hopeless individual to a man who loves his daughter more than anything else in the world. In an attempt to mend relationships, Sam and Lucy’s foster parents receive “shared custody” of Lucy so that Sam can continue to care for and look after her, while her foster parents can help him where he is unable to provide adequate support for his daughter. Through a final scene in the film, we see how all those who previously thought Sam to be useless and dangerous, like the lawyer Rita and Lucy’s foster family, now perceives him to be just like anybody else; a man who simply wants to love his daughter. In a change of perceptions, Sam is shown to be a man who, despite his immaturity, is a wonderful and caring

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