Frankie & Alice: Character Analysis: Frankie And Alice

​Below, discussion regarding Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) will be addressed in relationship to the movie Frankie & Alice. DID as defined in the DSM 5 is a dissociative disorder in which a person develops two or more distinct personalities (Comer, 2013, p. 209). DID can also be known by its former name of multiple personality disorder. Traub (2009) also adds that the symptoms of DID are not a result of medical conditions or substance abuse. This does not mean that those who are diagnosed with DID do not drink. According to Dorahy et al., (2014), although symptoms of DID are not a result of substance abuse, it has been found that 50% of

Through the film, it becomes clear that DID causes for a person to “blackout,” and subsequently switch alters, when triggered as we see in various examples shown in Frankie’s life. One of these examples is when Frankie brings her manager to her home with the intention of sleeping with him. Upon their arrival at her apartment, Frankie hears a strange sound which triggers her into switching identities, which in DID patients are known as “personalities” or “alters,” from “Frankie” to “Alice.” This switch brings about what happens next because “Alice” is an alter who is a Southern, racist, Caucasian woman. Thus, when “Alice” sees that the man in “her” apartment is an

A well-known girl with multiple personalities is one of many victims of this diagnosis. Many psychiatrist studied her behaviors, and learned from the documented history of her behaviors.

Still Alice (Genova, 2009) is a captivating debut novel about a 50-year-old woman’s sudden decline into early onset Alzheimer’s disease. The book is written by first time author Lisa Genova, who holds a PH.D in neuroscience from Harvard University. She’s also an online columnist for the national Alzheimer’s association. Her other books include Left Neglected and Love Anthony. She lives with her husband and two children in Cape Cod.

When a family is put in tough situations, it is natural to want to escape from it all. As a man surrounded by things that seem beyond his control, the main character of the film, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, shows the psychological emotional detachment that can occur when the realization of such an escape is impossible. Gilbert Grape is a man often thinking carefully about his situation and making an effort to filter his feelings. His family life is depressing, and his emotional response to his living arrangement is an overall rejection of everything around him. Gilbert often shows contempt for his family by having cynical thoughts of them whenever he speaks inwardly about them in his mind. Gilbert appears to be on autopilot through life, only speaking enough to keep things peaceful with friends and the people of Endora. Gilbert has a general lack of interest in most relationships outside of his family, and often turns a blind eye towards the town of Endora as a whole. His severance extends even to himself, as he is not emotionally honest with himself. As the film progresses, Gilbert's emotional state begins to readjust as he comes back into contact with his feelings. The emotional detachment is extreme for Gilbert, and Johnny Depp does an excellent job at depicting the psychological effects of a broken home and the difficulty one faces in overcoming it.

The film Frankie & Alice starring Halle Berry is based on a true story of a woman who is living with a dissociative identity disorder. Set a number of years back (likely the 1970s or 1980s), this film provides the audience with a close up look at what it might be like to live with a mental health disorder. While watching the film, I put a great deal of effort into understanding the symptoms and episodes of the disorder, as the main character experienced them. Through my findings, I have a greater understanding and appreciation not only of dissociative identity disorder but also of mental health in general.

On how it's tough for people to show any form of psychological instability until it's too late. And to those who say there is not a way you can know I mean by studying more about mental illness, it can be assured that the risk of mental issues causing such a disturbance in any form of violent attack it lowers the risk. As quoted by Michael B. from the department of psychiatry "Most studies suggest that for major mental health disorders, a treatment approach involving both drugs and psychotherapy is more effective than either treatment method used alone."Different types of doctors also prescribe medications to treat mental health disorders. Although this is a not the end solution to those who suffer little by little the violent act or even just risk will stop all together it might not be the last straw, but you should always start at some

John Hughes's The Breakfast Club is one of film history’s most iconic and renowned movies and is a cornerstone of 1980’s pop-culture. The Breakfast Club showcases five unique high school students who all unfortunately find themselves imprisoned in an all-day Saturday detention. The students go as following: Claire (a pretty girl), Brian (the nerd), John (the bad boy), Andrew (an athlete), and Allison (the strange, goth girl). These students come from very different backgrounds and social settings which proves to spark many conflicts between them as well as with their supervisor Mr. Vernon. But through this conflict they find similarities between themselves, and after spending nine hours locked up together, they find resolution within themselves and with their new friends. Psychology can explain why this happened as well as what caused other events to occur. This paper will examine four different psychological phenomena: stereotypes, conformity/normative social influence, ingroup versus outgroup/superordinate goals, and the various causes of attraction.

Multiple personality Disorder, (MPD) was first recognized in the 1700’s but was not understood so therefore was soon forgotten. Many cases showed up during the years, but was overlooked, or misdiagnosed as either schizophrenia or psychosis. Many in the medical profession did not believe that a person could have more than one personality in a body, unknowingly, even after the 1950’s. In 1993, records show that three to five thousand people were being treated for MPD, compared to the hundred cases reported ten years earlier. The disease is commonly found in adults who were abused mentally, physically, emotionally, and or sexually as children, between birth to eight years of age. The child uses a process called disassociation to separate himself/herself from the abusive situation. This is when the child makes up a personality to take control of the mind and body. During abuse, usually there is a personality for every emotion and feeling when the abuse is taking place. Symptoms of the disease include: amnesia, hallucinations, depression, and suicidal thoughts, and tendencies, and there can be anywhere from two to over a hundred different personalities. Usually each personality will fall into one of the following categories: host, core, child, teenager, artistic, adult, animals, intimate members, self-helpers, persecutor, rescuer and helper. The child is usually under the age of twelve, with according behaviors,

Sexual molestation, beating, neglect, burning, and verbal abuse. All of these horrible happenings are believed to be linked to a condition known as Multiple personality disorder (MPD). Multiple personality disorder, also known as dissociative identity disorder, is a mental illness in which a person has two or more identities or personalities. Single personalities randomly take control of the individual's behavior. Usually, the sufferer gives the personalities their own names. These multiple personalities almost always have characteristics that greatly differ from the person's primary identity. A person with this disorder always experiences some amount of amnesia. Most of the time the individual forgets

“Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a slowly progressive disease of the brain that is characterized by impairment of memory and eventually by disturbances in reasoning, planning, language, and perception.” (Howard Crystal) In Health 1000 we were asked to read the book Still Alice. I have never dealt with or have done any study on Alzheimer’s disease before reading this book. After finishing this book it has really opened my eyes to how bad of a disease and how it cripples the mind. I never imagined the effect of this disease on a patient and the patient family. This book is about a upper middle aged lady named Alice who is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, and how she and her family learn how to deal with disease. One of the things this book

Socioeconomic status is a defining factor in nearly every society around the world. Therefore, it is unsurprising that the issues of class and stratification are manifest in many types of media, including films. Like many nations, the United States operates under the class system. The sociologist Dalton Conley defined the class system as, “an economically based hierarchical system characterized by cohesive, oppositional groups and somewhat loose social mobility” (Conley 249). Still Alice and The Notebook depict social stratification and the struggles between different socioeconomic classes. Still Alice follows the life of Alice Howland, a linguistics professor at Columbia University, as she is diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s and fights to retain her memories and relationships. The film is set in modern day America, in which there is a stigma associated with dementia, there is a large degree of gender inequality, and some careers are viewed as prestigious (e.g. doctors and lawyers) while others are condemned by society (e.g. starving artists). The Notebook shares the story of Noah Calhoun as he tries to revive the memories of his wife Allie, who suffers from dementia, by reading her the story of their undying love. While Noah reads to Allie, the movie displays their life in the 1940s. During this time, America was facing World War II, segregation, and a highly stratified society (U.S. Timeline, 1940-1949). When the movie shows elderly Noah and Allie, it takes place in

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), formerly known as Multiple Personality Disorder, is a psychological issue that is quite debilitating to the affected individual. Symptoms of this disorder often mimic those of other physical and mental disorders such as seizure disorder, substance abuse, and post-traumatic stress disorder (“Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality Disorder)”, 2012). The distinguishing symptom of Dissociative Identity Disorder, however, is the presence of two or more distinct identities that alternately take control of the individual and this symptom is the main basis and plot of The Secret Window. In addition, the person is plagued by memory losses that cannot be explained by ordinary forgetfulness and may even find items that he or she doesn’t remember buying. (“Dissociative Identity Disorder (Multiple Personality Disorder)”, 2014). Also, the individual may experience unexplained changes in eating

I saw Still Alice this week. I wanted to see the Glen Campbell movie (which I will watch later) but opted for this one first. What a stirring movie! Watching the progression of her decline, and realizing that she KNEW that she was affected, was very sad. It was heartening to see the support that her family gave her, even while dealing with their own issues. The fact that she was proactive on the front end, in obtaining the diagnostic testing helped her family be better able to understand what was happening and to support her. I love the fact that she and her daughter were able to have a better relationship, and that her daughter was truly able to see her mom, even when her mom had trouble seeing her earlier.

Alice has an overbearing mother who is very critical of her. This has obviously put a strain on their relationship. Though much of the dynamics did not play out on screen it was implied that a rocky relationship exists between Alice and her mother whereas the opposite was true between her and her father. Alice has a lot of internalized frustration and anguish over her relationship with her parents and her family, especially Michael. She drinks to suppress her true feelings and control her anxiety as much as possible. The family as a whole is really struggling with boundaries and this is leading to triangulation. These are normal patterns of a dysfunctional family. No one in the Green family had a clear identity (not even Amy, the nanny; her role should have been clearly defined). These are signs of diffused boundaries and enmeshment. Each member was stuck in the same position and there was no room for individual growth and freedom until they went to treatment.