Massacre and Its Consequences in The Movie We Need to Talk About Kevin

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Recommended: Erikson's developmental theory case study

The movie “We Need to Talk About Kevin” is based flashbacks that Eva has of Kevin growing up as she deals with the aftermath of the massacre he committed, murdering fellow students in his high school. Based on Kevin’s character, one may assume that he is a psychopath for the way he acted and behaved as an individual. However, Kevin’s personality greatly contributed to him and the role he portrayed. The following theorists analyze what framed Kevin’s behavior and how their different theories contributed to the individuality of both Eva and Kevin.
Eric Fromm was a personality theorist who believed that human nature was shaped by childhood experiences. He was trained in Freudian psychoanalysis and other socially related theorists which lead him to develop his theory of personality which was based on analyzing people from a cultural and historical perspective instead of solely a psychological one. Fromm’s humanistic psychoanalysis states that one’s separation from the natural world results in basic anxiety which is caused by feelings of loneliness and isolation. As a result, people strive to be reunited with other people to escape these feelings. According to Fromm, humans have five distinctive existential needs which have evolved from human existence and aimed towards a reunion with the natural world to address any human dilemma. One of these needs, frame of orientation, is a road map to find one’s way through the world. Having a solid a frame of orientation allows people to understand the world and their place in it. Fromm would view Kevin as lacking a stable form of orientation since he never had any guidance from his parents as a child so he has to perceive the world in his own way. According to Fromm, people ran away from freedom...

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...e takes pills to deal with her depression and also drinks alcohol. The fear of non-being leads Eva to live defensively and to not confront her nonexistence. Eva’s existential quest is to gain essential freedom, to gain her destiny and her freedom of being and to stop living in a world in which she though was acceptable.
Based on these theorists, it was seen that Kevin acted the way he did because of the feelings he was experiencing and his surroundings. He felt like an outcast. His sister came into the picture and he felt replaced by her so he acted out in ways in which is viewed unacceptable by others. It should be kept in mind that when Eva found out she was pregnant with Kevin; she was not thrilled by the news or by his birth. In conclusion, Eva’s visits to Kevin in prison are her way of gaining freedom. It is her chance to fight back, to slowly gain her freedom.

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