Stigma and Discrimination

Disruption in one's behavior and inability to perform one's daily functioning activities is commonly known as mental illness. In more appropriate words mentally challenged. Years ago not much importance was given to mentally challenged people as they were either considered to be dangerous or useless for the society but now things have changed and the society to a greater extent has transformed. Our media has started to highlight this aspect in their dramas and movies however they show either the darker side of a person being challenged mentally or use the disorders for the sake of entertainment. This results in humiliation of the mentally challenged. One such movie is One flew over the Cuckoo's nest (1975) directed by Milos Forman. It is based on the novel One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest of 1962 written by Ken Kesey. The movie allows a layman to understand the lives of the one with mental illness and those without mental illness. But the place for such people portrayed in the movie is not considered positive by many critiques. However in the end it reveals the devastation this caring way has on people there.

Mental illness is a condition that alters a person ability of daily functioning. It changes a person's mood, feeling and behavior. It freezes the person's ability to cope up with different situations one deal with that include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) schizophrenia, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), depression bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder. Anorexia bulimia is few of the disorders commonly seen in the society now days. The good news is mental illness can be cured and treated but unfortunately everyone does not highlight this fact. The media of the society in which we breathe presents a wrong picture of mental illness. They portray it in such a way that people despite of seeking help isolate in their homes. Media portrays mental illness as something which can never be cured. And a person with mental illness can never live a healthy life in future. As said by "Ryan Howes, PhD, a psychologist, writer and professor in Pasadena, California. There are people out there who could benefit from therapy but don't go because they think it's just for 'crazy' people or think all therapists are nuts because that's what they see in the media" (quoted from T.Margarita)

However the movie that interests me is "One who flew over the Cuckoo's nest". Released in 1975 directed by Milos Forman Screenplay by Lawrence Hauben and Bo Goldman. It is based on the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest of 1962 written by Ken Kesey.

McMurphy, once again appears to be in jail he was a man who has committed many crimes. This time he was sent to prison for raping a young girl, she has a girl friend who was in real 15 years old. The girl lied to Mruphy about her age that she was eighteen years old. Rather than to spend his time in jail, the hero succeeds in convincing the guards that he is mentally ill , he's crazy and needs a need psychiatric care and Thus He is sent to a hospital. His ward was run by steely Nurse Louise Fletcher as Mildred Ratched . she applies unpleasant medical treatments and a mind-numbing drugs as a part of her daily routine to her the patients. McMurphy finds that the patients in the ward are being forced to become functional in the outer world and the people. Murphy establishes himself as the leader there.

In the movie there are quiet a lot of mental illnesses shown thorough the people who are Murphy's colleagues in the ward. Brad Dourif as Billy Bibbit is shown as a nervous stuttering young man, Sydney Lassick as Charlie Cheswick is shown as a man who has a childish temper, Danny DeVito as , Martini who is suffering from delusional attacks. William Redfield as Dale who is a paranoid, Christopher Lloyd as Max Taber who is belligerent and profane, William Duell as Jim Sefelt, she is epileptic and Will Sampson as Chief" Bromden who is a deaf and dumb.

The diagnosis of a mental illness inevitably comes with the additional burden of a negative label or misconception - otherwise known as stereotypes. This negative label is enhanced by the mass power of the media which has a profound effect on the public perceptions of mental illness. Stigma and discrimination are two concepts which are negatively attached to mental health disorders. Stigma by definition is a mark of disgrace or shame. It composes of four components: (1) labeling an individual with a condition; (2) stereotyping people who have that condition; (3) creating a division between superior "us" group and a devalued "them" group and (4) discriminating against someone on the basis of their label (Shives, 2012). Stigma is when people judge you on the traits you possess. This is a common practice among the people in our society these days but the fact is that this judging pattern is not new. Stigma can be direct and it can be indirect. The remarks and patterns our society follows in the case of mentally ill people can be very dangerous for the person who is suffering from mental illness. This affects a person's life and also the treatment he is undergoing. He might quit the treatment or probably isolate himself from the fear of being judged from people of his social circle. However it can also make a person violent. The stigma that prevails in the case of mentally challenged people includes lack of cooperation from their friends and family and also people from society. Mentally challenged people every day in their life have to face the harassments. In the movie they have tried to shown the stigma related to mentally challenged people in a much appropriate way and to some extent they have succeeded as well.