What 's Eating Gilbert Grape?

Identity is a group of characteristics, data or information that belongs exactly to one person or a group of people and that make it possible to establish differences between them. The consciousness that people have about themselves is part of their identity as well as what makes them unique. According to psychologists, identity is a consistent definition of one’s self as a unique individual, in terms of role, attitudes, beliefs and aspirations. Identity tries to define who people are, what they are, where they go or what they want to be or to do. Identity could depend on self-knowledge, self-esteem, or the ability of individuals to achieve their goals. Through self-analysis people can define who they are and who the people around them

In this essay it will be discussed how the theme identity played its role in the film “The Sapphires”. It will also see why young people have difficulties when it comes to knowing who they are. There will also be a further discussion about why friends and family can help on deciding who you are and why even some older people have to ask themselves who they are.

Becky becomes involved with the Grape family and helps Gilbert to realize that he is entitled to his own life, wants and needs. Gilbert Grape will be the focus of this paper and what can be done to implement changes in his life. These changes will benefit Gilbert and the entire Grape family, by focusing on a strengths prospective.

What’s Eating Gilbert Grape portrays a family that is dealing with the trials, tribulations, and also great times of having a member with a disability. The Grape family consists of Gilbert, Ellen, Amy, Mama, and of course, Arnie. The Grape family lives in an isolated town of Endora in a house that seems to be in shambles since their father died. In the beginning, Gilbert’s voiceover states that “living in Endora is like dancing to no music,” which one can definitely relate to after viewing this touching film. Gilbert Grape is a young man that has been impeded by more burdens than any man ought to have in an entire lifetime. He stocks shelves and delivers groceries for a local store, Lamson’s Grocery,

What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, a motion picture released in 1993 and directed by Lasse Hallström, follows the life of Gilbert Grape (Johnny Depp) and his younger brother Arnie (Leonardo DiCaprio), a mentally disabled 17 year old. Their mother, Bonnie (Darlene Cates), is morbidly obese and has been home-bound for the past seven years following the suicide of her husband. After their father died, Gilbert became the main caregiver and provider for Arnie, their two sisters Amy and Ellen, and their mother. As they grew up, Gilbert quickly became Arnie’s role-model, and the two now share a special bond. The brothers work together at the local grocery store, are often found playing hide and seek, and have a special tradition where they watch the campers drive through their small town of Endora, Iowa every year. This year while watching the campers, a traveler named Becky (Juliette Lewis) caught Gilbert’s eye, and he has trouble keeping up with a new love interest and Arnie’s constant mischief.

person. Without an identity people would not know what kind of person they are. The book

What’s Eating Gilbert Grape is a 1993 American drama film written by Peter Hedges and directed by Lasse Hallstrom. The film’s main characters are Johnny Depp as Gilbert Grape and Leonardo DiCaprio as Arnie Grape. The film depicts the burden of family caretaking and the affect it has on a family both mentally, physically, and financially. Gilbert is the primary caregiver for his mentally and developmentally disabled seventeen-year-old brother Arnie (who has the mental capacity of a young child), his morbidly obese mother Bonnie, known as Mama, and his two sisters Amy and Ellen. Amy, the oldest daughter, shares most of the household chores with Gilbert and helps with Arnie’s care. She plays the mother figure role for Arnie even though Arnie’s mother is alive. Ellen, the youngest daughter, is very negative in her feelings toward her family. She doesn’t help much with the family because she is busy being a teenage girl.

Arnie Grape was referred to this agency by Sheriff Jerry Farrell of the Endora Police Department. He was concerned about Arnie's continued lack of supervision. Sheriff Farrell stated that

In the movie What’s Eating Gilbert Grape directed by Lasse Hallstrom, the idea of adversity is clearly shown. The Grapes aren’t your typical family, after the mother spirals down the staircase of depression, the five children are forced to grow up and mature as they now have the responsibility of looking after their mother. Endora is the town in which the story is set and the children are trapped inside as their mother hasn’t left the house in seven years. Gilbert Grape is faced with a number of adversities, he has to live with an obese mother that demands him to always do better and take responsibility for his family, he has to protect and care for his little brother Arnie who is mentally slow and Gilbert is trapped in Endora due to all

In Lasse Hallström’s film, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?, the struggles of living with a mental illness is displayed through Arnie Grape, the protagonist’s younger brother. Grape’s disability is never discussed in the movie, as the movie focuses on Gilbert Grape, the principal character, and his struggles with life and family responsibilities. With the use of various resources, such as a psychology textbook (Lilienfeld 2014), credible health associations’ websites, and The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DMS-5), one is capable of analyzing the nature of Arnie’s disorder and make a valid assumption that he is dealing with a mental illness: autism. Autism is a spectrum disorder characterized by “various degrees in difficulties in social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication and repetitive behaviors” ("Learning About Autism," n.d.). It becomes clear, through Arnie Grape’s social and cognitive impairment, that he has Autism, despite the fact that the film does not clearly state that he has a mental illness.

In philosophy, the issue of personal identity concerns the conditions under which a person at one time is the same person at another time. An analysis of personal identity

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.

Gilbert becomes emotionally isolated due to his fear of judgment. The relationship between Gilbert and his family strained by the fear to act and the reality of his life creates the alienated personality readers see. Throughout What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, examples of his fear of judgment crippling him begin to surface. Gilbert says, “Something is not right about all this food going to my house. Something is wrong inside me, I start to think, but I change the subject” (112). Gilbert desperately wants to express on how food negatively affects his whole family, especially himself. However, readers see that Gilbert cannot even argue with himself, demonstrating how fear really plays

What’s Eating Gilbert Grape is a motion picture drama that follows the life of the Grape family in the small, lackluster town of Endora (Hallstrom, 1993). Gilbert Grape, played by a young Johnny Depp, is the film’s predominant character and apparent man of the family after his father’s death. Throughout the movie, Gilbert narrates his thoughts as he attempts to navigate his familial responsibilities, his work, and his personal life. Gilbert struggles to take care of Bonnie, his morbidly obese mother, his new love interest, Becky, and his autistic brother, Arnie. Arnie is played by Leonardo DiCaprio, and for the purpose of this assignment, will be the focus of this analysis.

Society’s ideological constructs and attitudes towards minority groups are created and reinforced through media imagery. Although negative associations that maintain inequities with regard to race, gender and homophobia (Conner & Bejoian, 2006) have been somewhat relieved, disability is still immersed in harmful connotations that restrict and inhibit the life of people with disabilities in our society.